


A Hero's Variable

by textrili



Category: Rockman | Mega Man - All Media Types, 僕のヒーローアカデミア | Boku no Hero Academia | My Hero Academia
Genre: Alternate Universe, Comedy, Gen, Self-Insert, Semi-Deconstruction
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-09-17
Updated: 2018-12-01
Packaged: 2019-07-13 17:34:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 23,534
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16022678
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/textrili/pseuds/textrili
Summary: A little self-insert in the same vein as Road Successor (over on Fanfiction) but in a different twist. A regular joe find himself reprising the role of Midoriya Izuku in an alternate universe where Bakugo is a Violent Tsundere Chick and he has a semi-functional quirk.  Bear with me because It's just an idea I had and I'm probably going to run with it hard.





	1. I was trying real hard to avoid the plot, honest!

Have you ever just...had a series of bad days that seemed to go on and on and on and on until you want to just...snap? I seem to be having such a long stint of that. But before I go onto to talk about why I've been feeling like this, I should probably start from the beginning.

You see, my name is Izuku Midoriya...rather that became my name. I was once a faceless number out of billions of random smucks minding my own business when suddenly tragedy struck me at eighty-eight miles per hour and splattered my business across several street blocks, which is to say that I died a pretty painful and morbid death. But I thought I’d finally get some sort of peace after I died, but apparently the guys in the afterlife said I was destined for great things and that I was ended before my time!...which I was pretty sure that was bullshit for “you had a destiny and it went unfinished so now you have to manifest said destiny in another way”.

So I found myself reborn as Izuku Midoriya, a small slip of a japanese boy in a world where eighty percent of the population have a quirk and I have a quick too! But just my luck I can’t use my quirk’s full ability unless I spend hours sunbathing naked on a roof. Apparently my Quirk basically made me into Mega Man, including being Solar Powered, can analyze and copy other quirks as data, and being able to shoot lemons from my hand. Unfortunately since I’m not a robot, I can’t fight with my quirk and I find myself tiring out when I try, which sucks because I really want to get into UA just to see how things play out.

“Where the hell are you Deku?!”

Ah yes...and then there’s that. You see, before I became Deku, I was a fan of BNHA. You know super heroes and what not. Fun shit. Being in said world? That was cool. Being in said world where Bakugo is an extremely violent tsundere named Satsuki? Well I’m pretty sure the powers-that-be is fucking with me because of my innate dislike for the character. Can’t say she ain’t cute though. When she doesn’t look like she wants to rip my dick off.

“There you are!” She screamed in my face.

I took a sniff. “You should really eat a breath mint. Now do you mind, firecracker, I’m trying to eat.” Said eating was just laying on the school roof without a shirt on photosynthesizing. Fuck yeah, the sun is a tasty laser.

“The teacher sent me to find you Deku.” She growled angrily with- oh my god she’s checking me out! I can see a light blush on her face.

“Mmhm, I’m pretty sure he did. But I’d rather lay here and eat than to hear your fanboys screech in my ear for the rest of the day. It’s our last day here so I’m taking my time.” I retorted. She verbally growled as she raised her hand to blast my eyebrows off...or my pants. I’m pretty sure she’s debating it. That or my ingrain hatred for Tsunderes is tainting my perspective. “Listen Satsuki.” She froze as I was using my soft voice. I know she hated my soft voice. Its when I spoke really low and calm like and it flustered her more than either of us wanted to admit. “I’m just going to do my own thing. We both know you’re top of the class and I’m just me. You don’t need me to validate how awesome you are.”

“F-Fucking Deku! Don’t speak to me like that!” She squeaked. “You shitty asshole! I’m-”

“Going to kill you for that, yada yada. Look, kill me later. I’m photosynthesizing right now and after class I’m taking you out to celebrate.”

She gave me a cold glare that would kill a lesser man. She hated when I mocked her. “...it better be that ice cream place I like.”

“Save up just for the occasion. Go nuts.” I said giving her a thumbs up. She huffed and left me alone on the roof. I sighed. Why was she more tolerable as a woman? I’d probably geld male Bakugo by now. Lord knows I have zero patience to wait until he gets kidnapped for him to get character growth.

Class ended and well I found myself wandering the streets. Satsuki didn’t even wait for me either. I bet she’s going to be troublesome about it…

“Man, no matter where you’re at, women are so troublesome.” I muttered as I walked through a tunnel. Suddenly I heard something squishy. Turning around, I raised an eyebrow as some sort of Ooze man towered over me. “You look like a fine meat suit!”

“I’m oddly flattered and disturbed. Unfortunately for you, I don’t swing that way.” I said clenching my fist. Damn, I knew this bastard would appear sooner or later, but I went a completely different route going home. What was the odds of this happening now? Astronomical at best. It must be a fixed point. And I wasn’t even fully charged yet. I formed a finger gun with my hand. I guess I’ll have to defend myself until a hero arrived. “Sorry, squishy, I’m off the menu!” I exclaimed pointing my finger at the monster and letting loose a bullet of pure solar energy.

It must’ve surprised the goo man as he took it head on and screamed in pain. “You’ll pay for that!” And before I knew it, he slammed me into a wall before gooing me up.

 _‘Damn it...I’m going to trick Satsuki into doing a sexy dance for me after this. I feel violated in many different ways...’_ I thought as I felt my strength leaving me.

Suddenly I heard someone say “Have no fear, you are safe”. Before I could even comprehend was that even was, I was freed and I could see the one man I was hoping to avoid so I wouldn’t get wrapped up in the plot of the story. But it looks like I had no choice.

All Might was here.

//--ooo---//

A short while later I found myself in the audience of the Number One Hero, All Might. “Sorry about that, I didn’t mean to get you caught up in my justice-ing.” He said.

“No worries man. I didn’t think I was going to deal with a villain on my way home so it was just dumb luck on my part.” I replied waving my hand. “I could’ve handled him if I wasn’t so low on energy. My Quirk takes a long while to charge because my body isn’t built for it. Rather, it lacks a component to power it. I might as well be Quirkless most of the time.”

I silently gauged how he would react to what I had said. I knew that All Might didn’t own his quirk, it was common knowledge to anyone who watched the show. Seeing his eye twitch was a good sign. “Oh? And what kind of Quirk do you have, young man?”

“I should at least introduce myself before I speak about that. The name’s Izuku Midoriya, and my Quirk is called X.”

“X?” He questioned.

“It’s a variable, X can be anything, X can do anything. It has limitless Potential. The main facet of my Quirk is that I can copy a small aspect of another’s quirk and store it in me for Offensive and Defensive purposes.” I explained before I switched to the only Quirk I had stored: Satsukis’. She insisted that I’d have something to protect myself so I would be less of a Deku. My hair turned Pale Blond and the colors of my clothes match her idea hero colors. “This is a Weapon Quirk that I got from...I suppose you’d can call her a friend.”

“You suppose?”

“Tsundere.”

“Ah.” came two voices. Oh look the Villain was awake.

“You should take care of him.” I pointed out.

“You’re right Young Midoriya! I shall be on my way!” He turned to leave in a big jump. I need to get him interested in seeking me out at least. So I decided to take a gamble.

“Just make sure you do so before your time limit.” I commented right as he left. I’m pretty sure he heard me because I’ve never seen someone stumble in midair before. I let out a chuckle and went about my business.

After finding a store to buy mouth wash and a soda, I found myself walking through a nearby shopping arcade when I saw a crowd. Sighing, I went over to see what the commotion was. Yep. Satsuki was caught by ooze man. ‘God fucking fixed points..’ I thought as I pushed my way through the crowd. The heroes couldn’t do anything. I closed my eyes checking my internal reserves. “Just enough.” I muttered before I took off running.

The Ooze Man cackled, talking about how he was going to get a new body, but I was going to give him a rude awakening. I channeled the rest of my solar power into my hand. “Hey ugly!”

“Bluh?! It’s you again!”

“EAT CHARGED SHOT!” I screamed pointing my fist at him. A bright blue flash escaped my hand. I screamed out in pain at the recoil but it did its job. It blew The Slime Man off Satsuki, just enough for me to grab her and pull her away.

“D-Deku what are you do-”

“Oh shut up. We don’t have time for this, can you move?”

“Don’t tell me what to do!?” She screeched.

“NOT THE TIME SATSUKI!” I yelled back. God damn it I’m reminded why I dislike Bakugo.

“You’re not going anywhere until I get a meat suit!” The Ooze man said reforming.

My eye twitched as I switched to Satsuki’s Quirk. “Eat shit and die!” I responded. “Nitro Blast!”

A controlled explosion escaped my hand this time causing more pain. Shit man, I could see blood gushing out of my arm. But it blew him away again, hopefully long enough for us to escape.

“I-Izuku!” I heard Satsuki exclaim in shock.

“E-Enough gawking, let’s go!” I was too tired to try and explain what I just did, and in pain. The things I do for Tsunderes. Luckily All Might got off his ass and blew the villain away. While the fans were cheering him on and checking on Satsuki, I snuck away. I didn’t have time for that.

The sun was setting. “Man...how troublesome.” I muttered looking at my injured arm. It was bruised but luckily the bleeding was temporary. I would need a long stay in the Solarium tomorrow to heal all that.

“Izuku!” I turned around to see a harried Satsuki. “I didn’t ask for you to save me!”

“I didn’t.” I said causing her to blink. “I just happened to be in the neighborhood and decided to kick that slime dude’s ass for trying to make me into his victim earlier. I didn’t save you. I just took the glory.” I ended before turning away.

”Damn it Izuku, I hate when you say shit like that, you bastard!”

“Then stop being a god damn Tsundere!” I shot back. “Either you like me or you don’t.” I could see her face turn red and before I could comment more, she left. “Tch, damn tsundere. They’re up there with oujos and kuuderes.” Shaking my head, I went about my way.

“I AM HERE!” Surprise All Might.

“AH!” I screamed jumping in fright! “Don’t do that! At all!”

“Sorry about that!” suddenly a cloud of smoke appeared and All Might wasn’t so...All Might anymore. “Now young man...I have some questions for you.” The skeletal man began with a frown.

“Like how I knew you had a time limit?” I supplied with a sigh. Time to use that excuse I had planned a long time ago. “My Quirk X has a lot of features. One of them is Analysis. I can process things far faster than any other being on this planet. And...as a fan of your work I started to notice how slowly your appearances and heroics slowly reduced after that fight you got injured. Actually getting to see you in person, my quirk activated somewhat and pointed out that you had a debilitating injury on your left side.”

“That’s impressive young man. I can see why your Quirk is so strong and yet so weak. I thought you had stopped that villain, but you ended up hurting yourself.”

“I couldn’t of stopped that Villain even at full strength. I don’t have an internal engine inside my body. I would have to sun bathe for a week straight to even do what a normal hero can do.” I admitted. “No matter how logically my Quirk makes me think, or how dangerous the situation was, even that excuse I gave to Satsuki was false. "Evil prevails when good people do nothing". I’m not a hero, but I don’t need a license to do what’s right.” I could see his eyes widen at that. “I suppose doing what’s right comes naturally to me.”

“I see...”

“Anyways, I’ll see you around, All Might.” I said turning to leave.

“Hold on a moment.” I glanced back at the man. “I think you might be the one to inherit my Quirk.”

“...excuse me?” I asked dumbly. Didn’t he already have someone else lined up? I mean, I was trying to prove that I was just a guy who wants to do the right thing but I didn't think I warranted that?

“My Quirk One for All was given to me by it’s predecessor. Despite your aloof nature, you have such a keen sense of justice.” he explained.

I scratched my cheek nervously. “I’m flattered All Might, but...don’t you have someone else better than just a kid like me?”

“Anyone could inherit One For All kid, but not many have the mind nor the mindset that comes to wielding it.” I nodded. Despite me knowing that I really have no choice in the matter, Izuku Midoriya inherits One for All, its a fixed point, I can see what he was getting at. Old Ben Parker had it right; great power, great responsibility.

“Are you sure though? I got into UA but with my Quirk’s Defect, I’m probably not going to be in the Hero Course.”

“Well then we’ll just have to make sure you get to the top.” He replied with an eye smile.

I let out a huff and gave him a smirk back. “My local tsundere will not like this...” Heck I'm pretty sure I'm not going to like this...

There goes my vacation.


	2. Everyday We Stray Closer To A Plot

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Izuku doesn't do anything by half measures, but he's set himself on this path, he might as well see it to the end. Satsuki is well...being Bakugo, and All Might likes Izuku's work ethic. And Satsuki is being Bakugo. I think that needed to be repeated.

Ten months. Ten months until the entrance exam for UA. That was my deadline to be prepared for All Might’s Quirk. That means I had Ten Months of free training. It’s not like I was academically terrible. I was second in Class, right behind Bakugo after all. Though it did mean I had to attend class more. I had to at least look like I was a model student.

“Ten Months, huh? I’ll be ready in Five.” I said quietly as I clenched my fist. Strength was never my forte. Planning, Strategy, Tactics…. Those were my fields of expertise. A good strategy is always impervious to the enemy’s counter actions. Each movement requires purpose, and clear goal in mind. No wasted effort. All Might had me cleaning up a nearby beach, but honestly I don’t think he understands how the Solar part of my Quirk works.

Underneath my skin is a network of miniature plates. So tiny that they look more like mesh than scales, and each of them worked like a solar panel, hence my ability to Photosynthesis. Though emitting that energy tends to be harder, circulating it through my body is a different story. I can already enhance my own physical prowess by a good mount. Though the scale between doing that versus One for All...well there’s no competition.

Me at a hundred percent charge is possibly at least at All Might’s five percent. But that’s more than enough to use it to speed my training up. Besides, it’s one of two ways I can safely get stronger. He’s thinking that increasing my base will help me control his Quirk and he’s not wrong. The stronger the foundation, the better the building is. What I’m doing is similar, but different. I’m acclimating to using that power, forcing my body to move and react at that level. It’s similar to what happened with Gohan and Goku in Dragon Ball Z. They got so used to the elevated state of power that sustaining it didn’t dent their stamina. The same applies here, but I’m also increasing my own capacity and circulation, something I should have been working on.

I think I got too complacent to say the least.

//---000---//

Man class was getting more and more boring. Maybe it’s because my brain process things far more faster and I retain information better, but I’d rather be sleeping in the sun.

“What have you been doing, Deku?” And then there was Satsuki. I glanced at her. Did this girl have any other expression? I’m pretty sure she did at one point but she destroyed them. Though I’m not surprised she confronting me during our break between classes. “Auntie said you’ve been coming home tired every night for the last few months and she’s getting concerned.” Ah...yeah...I did forget to tell mom I was training huh.

I let out a weak laugh. “I suppose I can tell you. Despite how loud you can get-” “You want me to kill you?!” “- you can keep a secret.” Not telling her something will just make the issue frustrating and I’d rather not deal with a nosy, angry, tsundere for the rest of my training. “I’m training harder to get into UA. I ran into a pro while they were off duty and he saw me training my quirk. He said that the reason why I have a problem emitting my power is because my internal reserves are pretty pitiful, so he’s ghost tutoring me in some exercises.”

“You sunova bitch, you got a pro helping you?!” She growled out in shock.

“It’s not like you can help me. You’re a natural at your quirk? Me, I’m a walking plant man with a half decent brain and the ability to adapt. I need all the help I can get if I’m going to be somewhere in the ball park of good heroes.” I replied dryly. “Besides, why are you worried? You’re literally a step away of getting recommended by pros to get into UA. You’d probably be in if you toned down the death threats. Nobody likes a hero or heroine so far up their ass they seem more like a legal villain than a hero.”

“What do you mean?”

“Look at Endeavor for instance. He’s literally a legal villain. The man is a walking chode, and if the rumors are true, he’s a firm believer of Quirk Marriages.” Rumors nothing, that one is true.

Satsuki looked a bit ill. “People still do that dumb shit?”

“Oh all the time. They want to be the best so why not breed a nice compliant tool to do it for them? It’s not even hidden knowledge that Endeavor wants All Might out the picture, he’s still has enough morals to not be a true villain about it. I wouldn’t even be surprised if he hadn’t already put a plan like that in motion.” I explained.

She went quiet for a moment. I suppose she was ingesting that tidbit of information. Despite her..intense reactions to emotions, she was very intelligent I’ll give her that.

“What do you think about that?”

“About what? Quirk Marriage? On a personal level, its bullshit. That’s people’s lives. They’re not Pokemon. Besides, people should be marrying for love, not power.” I replied with a shrug. “In a world where people can do extraordinary things, absolute power will corrupt absolutely.”

She made a tching noise. “What do you know about power, Deku, you can barely use yours.”

“I don’t need to use my power to be powerful nor dangerous.” Seeing her confused (and angry) look I elaborated. “Say I was quirkless, but still had the analytical skills to point out the strength and weaknesses of People’s Quirks. That in itself is dangerous. Information is a type of Power you know. And then hypothetically I began selling that information for money. Money is also a type of Power. Anyone with enough knowledge and money can be just as dangerous as someone who can blow up a building with a sneeze.”

“Stupid Deku, that’s comic book shit though, this is real life!”

“Politicians, CEOs of massive companies, anyone with the know-how of hacking and tracking through surveillance.” I rebuked with a shrug. “You don’t need physical power to hurt someone. You just need to know where to hurt them.”

Bakugo went silent after that. I consider that a win for the Dekuman.

//---000---//

It took me five months and six days but I finished his little work out thing just as planned. Luckily I never told him how I could literally cycle energy through my body and extend my stamina and productivity by ten percent.

“Whoa, I didn’t expect you to be finished so soon!” I looked up at All Might who was giving me his usual smile. I was currently laying down on a cleared patch of sand enjoying the morning sun. “When you told me you’d be done in half the time, you weren’t kidding! I’m kind of at a lost to what we can do...”

“That’s fine I suppose. As good as it is to work on the physical side of things, I need to work on my quirk a bit more.” I admitted with a sigh. “And start researching parts for my hero costume.”

“You say that like you’re already a hero.” All Might said sitting down next to me.

“I was already on this path, might as well see it to the end.” I sat up before stretching. “Besides, I already got a lead on how I can improve the emitting part of my Quirk. There’s a new Space Exhibit being displayed at a local Planetarium. Apparently there’s was a new type of lens developed that can parse light from heavenly bodies. I figured if I can talk with some of the people working there, I can figure out some equipment to use with my Quirk.”

“And it would be a learning experience!” He added with a grin. “I know about that exhibit. They asked one of the teachers at UA to help with the presentation. Thirteen if I remember correctly.”

I nodded. Thirteen was a Space themed hero, most likely named after “The Apollo Thirteen” shuttle. I glanced at him, offering a smile. “You can always join me on this trip, broaden your horizons, sensei.”

He blinked. “...you know that’s the first time you’ve called me that.” That didn’t stop his smirk though.

“Well it’s either All Might or Sensei. You really haven’t offered your real name yet and honestly I respect that.” Of course I knew his real name, but I wasn’t going to tell him that. I’d let him be the one to bridge that gap. “A Hero’s Personal Identity is paramount.”

He gave me that All Might “One Hundred Real Angus Beef” grin of his. “You continue to surprise me Young Izuku! But I do not mind you knowing, after all, I am your Sensei.” He then returned to his original form in a puff a smoke. “The name’s Toshinori Yagi kid.”

“Nice to finally meet you Sensei.” I replied with a smile.

//---000---//

Later that evening I was assaulted by the ghost of broken volume control. “Deku!”

“Yes BELOVED!” I turned to Satsuki to see that her face was all red and she was trying to form words. This may be the first time I’ve seen someone four-oh-four’d in real life. “Every time you run at me screaming my name like you were raised with no etiquette I’m going to say something to that effect and it will get progressively worse. And before you call me on that bluff, I am well read and have no problems stooping to innuendos.”

“Damn you...” she growled.

“Yes, damn me, damn me for wanting to age properly and have good hearing as well. Whatchu want Sacchan?”

She looked like she wanted to strangle me but thought better of it and took a calming deep breath. “I want to know the name of the Hero whose training you.”

“Sorry, can’t tell ya. I promised him I wouldn’t tell and besides going around blabbing that a Pro is training a civilian like sidekick is possibly the worse thing you could do.” I replied.

She bit her lip like she was fighting the urge to murder me. “Well, what are you planning to do about UA?”

“Well since my Physical conditioning has been more or less completed, having completed his training set literally four to five months in advance, he’s allowing me to work with my quirk. That said, I’ll be going on an educational field trip tomorrow.”

“Where to?”

“The Musutafu Laser Planetarium.” I replied with a shrug.

“You’re going to the MLP-” At that point I mentally had to reign myself in from laughing. I didn’t even realize that was the acronym until she said it. “- to do research?”

“Satsuki, it’s a place where they do research on celestial bodies like the sun, and I’m pretty sure I’m ninety-eight percent Solar Panel. Where else would I go to learn more about my power and even get tips on making gear to use.”

“Only ninety-eight percent?”

“There are places I didn’t check.” I gave her a leer. “Wanna help me out?”

The explosion to the face was so worth it.


	3. Someone Tell the Plot to Leave! NOW!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Izuku isn't a fan of coincidences and Endeavor and neither should you be. He thought it was going to be a easy research day until the fire nation and Nezu attacked!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If anything in this chapter seems weird, let me know. I had to revise it several times because it just didn't want to get written properly.

The next morning found me sitting outside of the MLP eating a muffin. Man, it took me forever to find a place that sells a good Blueberry Muffin in town. I’m kind of glad I came early. Satsuki came by earlier and she was acting weird...like….concerned girlfriend weird. Honestly I didn’t know what to make of it. She tried to play it off with her usual tsundere act but I wasn’t buying it. Sitting in front of the building, I can’t help but to feel like today is going to be one of those days. It feels like a Tuesday. Pulling out my phone, I silently curse. It is Tuesday. 

“Something wrong, my boy?” I look up from my phone to see Toshinori looking at me with concern.

“No it’s nothing. Just girl trouble.”

“Your local Tsundere giving you problems?” He asked with a smile.

“She was acting weird. Like concerned girlfriend weird.” I replied with a shrug. “I’ll probably ask her about it later.” Honestly I don’t want it to be a Superhero Tuesday. It’s too early for me to be suffering from a Superhero Calendar. “Anyways, let’s get going.”

“Right.”

We entered the building and I was blown away at how technological this place was. So many different monitors displaying different information, large holographic models of different planets, exhibits. It felt more like a tourist trap than what I was expecting. 

“Toshi!” I was brought out of my awe when a person wearing a slightly odd Space suit approached us.

“Thirteen, hey. I thought you were busy.” Sensei said back with a wave and a grin. 

“We always have time for friends here at SciLab.”

“Excuse me?” Did they just say what I thought they said? “Did you say SciLab? I thought this was the Musutafu Laser Planetarium.”

“It is! But where the scientists and heroes like me work at is a subsection of this place called the “Science Labs” or SciLab  for short. You must be the kid Toshi couldn’t help but to gush about.”

Sensei was gushing about me? I felt my face heat up. Praise was such a foreign concept to me that I still flushed when praised. “I hope it wasn't something embarrassing…” I muttered.

“Nope, nothing but good things. Anyways, why don’t we head on back to the labs and we can talk about quirks.”

Oh good, a change of pace. Hopefully my face will stop imitating a tomato. If there was one thing that was constant between canon Izuku and I is that we simply can’t handle praise and admiration well. I’m just glad that Satsuki doesn’t know about it and that I can curb the  quirkiness (ha!) of my reactions by pure sarcasm. She doesn’t need to know that her blatant concern makes me feel all gooey inside. Keep Tsunderes at arm’s length - close enough to keep them from going Yandere and far enough from going into femdom territory. 

I followed them into SciLab, quietly listening in on their conversation. Ive always wondered if Thirteen was a guy or a girl. The show never really specified. Maybe I’ll find out. This universe is weird.

We soon came to the lab were a lot of Scientists and even some Heroes was meandering about. Both of my eyebrows met my hair as I happened to catch the shapely rear of one Midnight. 

“It seems that Young Midoriya is quite healthy in his tastes.” I heard a voice say. Once again my face turned red as I turned to source of the voice. Sitting at a table drinking tea was a Hero I did take the time to study. Nezu, the principle of U.A. Highschool. His Quirk High Spec was something to be admired and feared. He was a modern day Zhuge Liang.  Still, embarrassed, I shoved my hands into my pocket, ignoring the looks of the other people who hear Nezu say that, including Midnight.

“I’m a healthy guy alright? No need to judge.” I grumbled.

“Is this your new protege, All Might?” Uh oh, my douche senses just burned out. I glanced over to the owner of the voice to see Endeavor with...a girl who looked like she wanted to be anywhere else but next to Endeavor. She had White and Red hair, bisected down the middle like a Pokeball on her side and a red scar. Wait...holy shit, is that Todoroki?! Why he a she?...then again I had stopped questioning why Bakugo was a she in this universe as soon as she opened her mouth. “His attitude is as airy as yours, no wonder you chose him.”

My eye twitched. Deep breaths Izuku. “Right, I’m going to ignore the fact that you somehow forgot proper etiquette and introduce myself. My name is Midoriya Izuku, nice to meet you.” Endeavor glared at me for a moment before ignoring me. “Or you can be a total flaming shit bag in human form, you can do that too.”

Ah that got his attention. And Todoroki’s for that matter. “What was that?”

“I called you a total flaming shit bag in human form. I did not stutter, nor am I going to mince words with an asshole.” I replied with a deadpan expression. “I can tell that you’re so up your own ass that you won’t need a prostate exam for the next six decades or so.” Oh that got his fires burning.

“Izuku!” All Might admonished. "You can't just call an adult an uhh...that thing you just called him!" I love you Toshi-sensei, never change you cinnamon bun.

“Hey, a spade is a spade. From what I can tell the only reason he’s not labeled a criminal is the fact that he’s in the number two spot.”

“Watch what you say, brat, or-”

“Or you’ll what, burn me alive? Try it shithead, I promise you, you won’t even see me coming.” I said grinning darkly. I began circulating the solar energy inside of me. I didn't want to show off a hidden technique but to put Endeavor in his place, I’d gladly do so.

“That’s enough.” Another voice said. Endeavor’s flames went out as some sort of tape wrapped around me. I glanced over to see a man with wild black hair and a serious case of dry eye. Eraser Head.

“I quite agree!” Nezu said hopping onto a table. “We’re not here to fight and I’m sure we’re all on the same side.” Endeavor huffed and looked away.  Nezu looked at me expectantly.

“What, if you asking me to apologize, then you’re going to be wasting everyone's time.” I replied removing the capture tape from my body like it was nothing. Erasure Head raised an eyebrow. I shrugged at him. He grunted annoyed. I smirked back. “Nice talk Erasure Head. Anyways, why is everyone here? I didn’t come at a bad  time did I?”

“Whatever do you mean?” Nezu questioned amused.

“I remember telling All Might I was coming here yesterday. But I count at least Eight Pro Heroes and Five hopefuls including me.” Nezu, Erasure Head, Thirteen, All Might, Endeavor, Midnight, Ingenium, and is that Best Jeanest in the back? Then there was me, Todoroki, an uptight kid standing next to Ingenium who looked mortified so that had to be Iida, A rather shy looking ravenette which I’m guessing is Momo, and a bluette caught up in her own music...Jirou if I  remember correctly. “Now I’m not a fan of coincidences, but this smells like a bad set up.” Nezu grinned at me. I furrowed by brows. His grin did not go away. I threw my hands up. “...god damn dragons…”

“That’s a new one.” He replied with his grin.

“Anyone who can’t recognize a sleeping dragon is doomed to be devoured by waking them.” I said back.

I could tell my words confused most of the people in the room but Nezu was impressed.

“In any case, your assessment is right. All Might had kept me informed about your progress and when he told me about your plan, I had an idea to bring together some of the impressive students wanting to enter U.A. for a mock trial.”

“A mock trial?” Momo questioned concerned.

“Yes, think of it as an early entrance exams. You all will be put into a simulation and must work together to solve the problem immediately.” He explained.

“You chose the five of us because individually we excel in one aspect of being a hero, but as a unit, we can achieve better results.” I said tapping my finger against my temple.

“You analysis is correct!”

“Pardon my interruption, but I cannot see how a crude individual like him was chosen to be a part of this, even if its impromptu!” Iida announced. Ingenium looked sheepishly.

I raised an eyebrow. I glanced at All Might. All Might glanced at me. “Go ahead.” He said with a sigh.

I smirked and glanced at Iida. “Speed Gear.” Before anyone could react or realize what I had done, I moved over to Iida and took his glasses (and his wallet)  before moving back to where I was standing. 

“W-WHAT THE?!” He exclaimed. 

“Speed Gear. It’s a technique I developed with my quirk. By cycling the solar energy through my body at high speeds, I can move closer and closer to the speed of light. Physically I can’t achieve total light speed, but at my current level, I’m moving faster than anyone else can react. Think of it like me getting the ability to slow down time for everyone but me. Best thing is that it doesn't drain any of the solar energy in my body to use it. However it does overheat my body if I use it for too long.” I explained wearing his glasses and opening his wallet. “Ida Tenya huh? What kind of guy doesn't carry a condom in his wallet for emergencies.”

“M-M-My Wallet!?” He exclaimed with a blush. 

“Yep.” I walked over and put his wallet in his hand and his glasses on his face. “Let that be a lesson to you.”

“And what kind of lesson were you trying to teach him?” Aizawa questioned.

“Who you are here-” I tapped his head gently. “-doesn’t disprove what’s in here.” I tapped his chest. “I’ve trained my entire life mastering my powers and more so my own strength to be a hero. I don’t need to act or be someone else to save people. So relax Gearshift, my attitude towards people don’t invalidate my desire to save them.”

“Gearshift?” He questioned.

“You seem like the type who stick to formality. Me? I’m more flexible and besides, we’re going to be working together. Formality gets in the way of being people.” His eyes widen. “Do you understand what I’m saying?”

Iida nodded. “I understand what you’re saying.”

I smirked. “Good, so why don’t we students get to know each other before we see a side of Nezu no one ever acknowledges.”

“Quite right. If you would proceed over to that room over there.” Nezu pointed to a door. “There are locker rooms for both boys and girls.” 

The girls went ahead while I stuck with Iida. “What side are you talking about?” He asked me.

“Rule number three when dealing with sleeping dragons: beware of sadism.” 

//---[Normal PoV]---//

“Your new protege is certainly lively.” Midnight commented once the kids were out of the room. “Honestly I didn’t expect him to square up with Endeavor like that. Not only that, he was sure that he could win.”

“Young Midoriya isn’t without his confidence, but as long as I’ve known him, he’s never made a claim that he could not back up with his actions.” All Might replied a bit sheepishly. “But he does have a good heart, if not a mischievous streak.”

“Which means he’ll be trouble when he comes to U.A.” Aizawa muttered as he looked at his capture weapon. “I see...he magnetized it.”

“What?” Ingenium questioned approaching Eraser Head.

“My Capture Weapon is made out of a special metal fiber, I use it against people with Mutation Quirks mostly. But he must have guessed that the material had to be made of metal so he magnetized it and then repelled it.”

“He explained it himself.” Nezu commented. “His body contains Solar Energy, and to use that speed ability he turns his entire internal systems into a generator of sorts. I can see why he wasn’t afraid to fight Endeavor.”

“And why is that?” Endeavor questioned, slightly curious.

“Because that’s only one half of his “Gear” Technique.” Nezu replied. “He said he circulates it through is body at high speeds to force his body and mind to move at those speeds, what do you think would happen if he released  that energy in a focal blast.”

Everyone eyes widen. “The blast would be so powerful, nothing could stop it.” Best Jeanest deduced.

“Exactly! And that’s why I think he has another technique he probably calls ‘Power Gear’.It would be his best bet to take down targets who can survive normal attacks with ease.” Nezu concluded. “By the way, Aizawa, whatever you do, don’t use your quirk on Midoriya-kun.”

“And why not?” He questioned confused.

“From his medical records, they likened his entire body as one mechanical unit. For all intents, his body is techno-organic. Cutting off his quirk could put him into a coma at best and kill him at worse.” 

“How is that possible?” Midnight questioned, concerned. 

“Isn’t it obvious?” Endeavor said looking at the screen. They all turned to see the students walking into the simulation room. “His quirk is integrated into every aspect of his body, from mental faculties to controlling every aspect of his body. You probably didn’t notice, but he was barely breathing.”

“What?!” This time that was All Might.

“I’m guessing that brat figured out the bare minimum “settings” to run his bodily functions, and ran with it. The end result is that his body is always at “rest” and ready to kick it into high gear. That brat is dangerous.”  The other heroes couldn’t help but to think on that statement.

//---[with the students]---//

“Izuku.” Izuku raised an eyebrow as Todoroki approached him. “Why did you openly insult my father like that?”

“What, you didn’t want to?” He questioned back with a lazy grin. The girl eyes widen slightly at that. “Hey, I could tell you couldn’t stand even standing next to him and to be fair, he started it first. I mean, who pissed in his Wheaties this morning or is he always like that?”

“He’s always like that, but you didn’t answer my question.” 

Izuku sighed. “I’m a bit of a walking analysis machine. My quirk has forced to work like a supercomputer to work my body. And I’ve always been a fan of heroes, and at one point I thought Endeavor was cool.” She gave him a look. “Hey I was young and fire was cool. But then I started gathering data on him and my mind came to a conclusion that he was a reckless sociopath with an inferiority complex. I came in there with All Might and the first thing he does is compare me to you. Granted, you’re hella attractive, just like the other girls here-” Momo and Jirou who was listening in blushed slightly. Todoroki did as well.  “- but I deserve to be judged on my own merits, not on who sponsors me, don’t you think?”

“Yeah.” She stuttered out before she composed herself. “No, I understand that completely.”

“Good, so what’s your name?” Izuku asked before glancing at Momo and Jirou. “I want to know who I’m working with before we start this mission.”

“Oh right. My name is Todoroki Akari.” She said introducing herself.

“I’m Yaoyorozu Momo.” Momo introduced herself next.

“Jirou Kyoka.” Came Jirou’s blunt introduction.

“Nice to meet you all,  Midoriya Izuku and this stiff board is Iida Tenya.”

“I’m not a stiff board!” Tenya exclaimed. 

“Sure you’re not.” Izuku smirked and nudged the taller boy with an elbow. “Don’t worry, The work will break you out of that real quick.”

“What do you mean?” Momo asked confused.

“Being a hero is stressful on levels we can’t even comprehend. Some heroes either break after a few years, fall into their own delusions-” Akari snorted. -”Or they find outlets to release that stress. It does us no good to go into situations stiff like a statue. We have to be loose and keep calm.”

“I see…” Jirou muttered. “So Izuku, what’s your quirk? Is it Super Speed?”

“I call it “X”, but really it’s more complicated than that.” He replied with a shrug. “To simplify, my Quirk mutated my body to be part machine. I weigh more than I look because of the Solar Cells and biomechanical parts in my body. I can Absorb and Emit Solar Energy, and I can absorb an aspect of another person’s quirk and weaponize it.”

The other teens looked at him shocked. “That...that seems broken as hell.” Jirou muttered. 

“So how does that work?” Iida asked curious.

“Here, I’ll show you.”  Izuku moved over to Jirou and offered his right hand “Here, take my hand.”

Jirou looked confused until she looked at his hand. His hand had circuits running through it. “Oh I see, so you have to touch people to get their aspect right?”

“Right.” Izuku confirmed.

“...why the hell not.” Jirou touched his hand. Suddenly Izuku’s hair and eye color matched Jirou’s. “Whoa!”

“A side effect of accepting a quirk power like that. So let’s see what I got…” Izuku stepped away for a moment closing his eyes.

“...do anyone knows what he’s doing?” Jirou questioned.

“If his mind is like a supercomputer like he said, he’s going over the data.” Iida replied while adjusting his glasses.

“I see…”

“Got it.” Izuku said opening his eyes. “Hey this is one of those hard light simulation rooms right?” He asked looking up.

“Correct!” Nezu’s voice said over an intercom. “Do you need something before we begin? I see that you’ve adapted Kyoka’s Quirk.”

“Yeah, I need a wall.” The others looked confused before a wall appeared a few feet away from them. “Perfect! Noise Crush!” A small blue wave of energy flew from his hand towards the wall, hitting it before flying right back at him.

“Watch out!” Momo called out in worry.

“Don’t worry,” The blue wave hit Izuku causing him to glow blue. “Noise Crush sends out visible sound waves to hit targets. If it hits a wall, it flies back to me, giving me a charge for this!” He pointed his hand out and unleashed a larger Noise Crush wave that flew at the wall at high speeds before hitting the wall, cracking it. He turned to Jirou. “Thank you for allowing me to add to my arsenal.” He thanked her before bowing.

“Hey now, no need to bow! What happened to being flexible?!” Jirou exclaimed embarrassed. The others were amused in their own way. 

“In any case, we can begin the test.” Nezu announced as the scenery changed from the testing room to city scape. “In this simulation, Villains have barricaded themselves inside the building before you. You must work together and stop them before they hurt their hostages.”

The five teens tensed as they stared at the building before them. None of the teens notice however the building wavering for a brief moment as if the place was glitched. 


	4. No Need For New Villains

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Or, in which Izuku get's buffs and a huge nerf! Izuku Wakes up in a weird place and realized that things aren't as he thought they would be! An enemy appears and a threat to the world announces itself! Izuku thought All For One might have been his only concern, but now he has his own threat, one under the banner of Nebula Grey!

//---[Izuku PoV]---//

The sky was a technicolor mess of ones and zeros. Yep, something went to shit. We had made a simple plan: go in, assess the situation, and then use each of our talents to save the hostages. Instead as soon as we entered the room, I blacked out. Next thing I know, I’m looking up at what looked like the matrix with a really bad wallpaper. Why does this oddly seem familiar…

I climbed to my feet and looked around to get a better sense of my space…I blinked as I recognized a small green robot thing standing off to the side. “...Mr. Program?!” Did something mess with the simulation and somehow dumped me into the network? I approached the Mr. Prog.

“Hello?”

“GREETINGS! WELCOME TO THE SIMULATION NETWORK!”

Uh...ow. I guess they do scream everything out. Wasn’t expecting that.

“What’s going on?”

“ARE YOU HERE TO FIX THE NETWORK? OH THANK GOODNESS! THAT STRANGE PROGRAM JUST TOOK OVER THE PLACE AND CARRIES OFF SOME PEOPLE DEEP INTO THE SIMULATION!”

I think I might go deaf at this rate. Wait if I’m on the network can I just…

“I’ll do my best to figure out what’s going on.”

“Oh thank you!” Oh thank god, I can turn down the volume! “Oh take this!”  He handed me a ball of data. Suddenly a pain shot through my hand then my arm.

“Ow! What was that?!” 

“That was Buster Data. Normal Progs like me can’t use it, but you should be able to.”

“I guess?” I looked down to my hand and noticed it was surrounded by a green cylinder with a barrel at the tip. “Is there anything else I need to know about the Network?”

“Oh! Right! To get to the next Area, you need to connect all the light nodes to light the bridge!” 

This is just like a battle network situation alright.  At least I have a buster. Odd… it feels like my own hand except I know how to shoot it. Is this what it’s like to be fully techno-organic? I really didn’t put much thought into it...rather it just came naturally.

I remember something from class, how Quirks can influence a person’s personality to the point that what may be weird to another, its natural to the user. It was one of the reasons why I tolerated Satsuki to a point; she couldn’t help that her quirk made her more explosive than normal. Maybe my Quirk changed my mindset just minutely that even I could not discern what was different in me. I try to live my life by a set of logical and moral rules, maybe to my quirk, these are simply lines of code that dictate how I behave, like software. 

I shook my head. There was no time for thoughts like this! I need to help the others! I wonder how panicked the Adults were…

//---[Normal PoV]---//

Nezu frowned as the scientists of Sci Labs worked furiously to figure out what happened. The entire system crashed and the kids were missing. He was racking his brain trying to figure out what happened. The heroes didn’t understand it either. And Endeavor…

“WORK FASTER!” Despite his rather harsh goal he set for his child, he was understandably nettled. He wasn’t dad of the year but someone took his daughter. Let’s just say he went from a flaming douche to a cerberus.

“We’re trying sir, but the system is locked!” One scientist replied in fear.

“Wait, I got something!” Another said moving it to the main view screen. It showed Izuku running through a strange world fighting off even stranger enemies. “What in the world?”

“I’ve seen nothing like this before.” Another commented.

“Can you contact Izuku?” Nezu asked.

“Uh….yes I can! Here!” He pressed a button. 

“Izuku!” Said boy flinched before dodging a shockwave from what looked like a living hard hat. 

**[Nezu?! Hey look, I’m kinda busy right now, so if you can call back?]** Izuku replied firing bullets from a strange device on his arm.

“Where is my daughter boy?” Endeavor growled.

**[Honestly sir, that’s what I’m working on figuring out. According to the Programs working here, someone dragged Akari and everyone else off leaving me unconscious. Quite frankly, I’m insulted that I wasn’t worth at least getting roughed up.]** The fact that Izuku gave Endeavor a straight answer after their confrontation earlier spoke volumes at how stressed the boy was.

“Izuku, what can you tell us about the place you’re in. You said “Programs”?” A Scientist asked/stated.

**[You’re not going to believe this, but we got transported into the physical manifestation of the Simulator Main Frame. And these things-]** They watch as Izuku changed colors and let out a violent explosion destroying more of the creatures. **[-are physical manifestations of Viruses. Man, that data that Program gave me was a great upgrade to my quirk!]**

“What data?” All Might questioned, his eyes narrowing.

**[It was “Buster Data”, Sensei. From what I understand, it's the data compiled on the Hard Light Guns used during training simulations. It hurt like hell accepting Raw Data, but now I have a way to fire my Solar Energy with high accuracy and less energy.** ] They watched as Izuku finished what looked like a laser puzzle and a path opened up. **[My guess is whoever did this has the ability to move through networks and somehow got into the systems. Start searching for outside interference while I work on finding out whose behind this.]**

“No Izuku, it’s too dangerous!” All Might exclaimed.

**[Sorry Sensei, but I really don’t have a choice. I need to save the others before something happens to them. They...don’t have the same Defect as I do.]**  The scientists all paused as everyone looked up at the Monitor. **[Even among people with Quirks, I’m less human than anyone else. I physically accepted data from a living Program for crying out loud! They won’t survive here unless I do something. And I refuse to leave my team behind, even if we just formed!]**

“...Midoriya...I cannot deny your valor and your drive to be a Hero…” All Might muttered before sighing. “Very well! Go forth! We’ll work hard on our end!”

**[Yes Sir! Rockman out!]** Izuku went into  the next area and the feed went out.

“...Rockman huh…” Aizawa muttered. “As far as hero names go, it needs work.”

“I think it fits him perfectly.” Midnight  commented with a weak smile. 

“Enough Chatter!” Endeavor barked out. “You scientists will work on fixing the issue and finding out whose behind this! Eraser Head, Ingenium, Midnight, and I will patrol outside to see if there’s anything suspicious outside of the building.”

“And what about me?” All Might questioned.

Endeavor glared at All Might. It wasn't his usual glares. It actually made All Might nervous. “I’m trusting your idiot of a student to save my baby girl. If anything happens to her, I need a target.”

All Might sweated nervously. “Right.” he stuttered out. He could deal with Endeavor the number two hero. He didn't think he could handle Endeavor the dad. 

Even thinking it left a weird taste in his mouth.

//---[Izuku POV]---//

I felt a shiver go up my spine. “Why does it feel like I just fell face first into another annoying anime trope?” I muttered to myself before walking over to the Mr. Prog. “Hey, what can you tell me about this area?”

“The control panel for the Simulation Comp is in the back! It’s locked behind three Hard-light Gates! The Bad Program locked itself behind the gates with the other programs it had with it.”

“Well I know I’m close.” I began to walk off when suddenly the Mr. Prog ran in front of me.

“Wait! There are traps that can really hurt you if you don’t have protection protocols! Here, take this!”

He gave me a data orb. Oh no…

I hissed in pain as it encompassed my entire body. I looked down at my body in shock. I looked just like Hub, but green! I looked where my Navi Mark supposed to be, and there was a stylized X covering the rabbit like design the original Izuku had for his costume. 

“Alright!” I said pumped, carefully ignoring the fact that more of my own “data” had been modified. No need to worry when I have friends to save. “Thanks!”

“No problem! Good luck out there!” 

I nodded before heading into the labyrinth of Viruses and Death traps.

//---[Normal POV]---//

“Any news on whose responsible for this?” Nezu asked. 

“The scientist are kind of baffled on this.” Jeanest said as he sat down next to Nezu. “They traced the intrusion but it came from the Net itself. And when they traced that, it just led to a random spot in the middle of the town. Not a website or router.”

“I don’t think I heard of a Quirk like that.” All Might muttered. “Any word on Rockman?”

“You really like  that name, don’t you All Might?” Jeanest asked with a smirk, not that many could tell. “The scientist who first found him is tracking him. With any luck we can get another signal.”

“Good.” All Might said sighing. “You know, I did some digging on Midoriya, to figure out what kind of home he lived in?”

“Oh yeah?”

“Apparently he lives with his Mother, Inko. His father...well he left them to work in America, better benefits and easier right? Turns out he’s been cheating on his wife and even has a kid on the way.” All Might replied frowning.

“Damn…” Jeanest replied with a sigh. “And his mom doesn't even know?”

“Probably not, and the kid doesn't know. At least I think he doesn't.” 

“What do you mean?” 

“There’s a bit of...resentment that comes up when his dad is mentioned.” All Might explained. “He might not know whats going on with his dad, but he knows the man hasn't been there in his life and he hates what its done to his mother. “

“Poor kid.” Jeanest felt pity for the kid. “That would explain why he was so antagonistic towards Endeavor. You've heard the rumors about the guy right?”

“Yeah…” Endeavor was the type of man who endorsed Quirk Marriages, a rather archaic thing that fell out years ago, even within the Villain Community. It wasn't a guaranteed process, and some quirks...some quirks became weaker when mixed with others. “I can see that being the case.”

“Sirs, we got visual on Rockman.” Everyone turned to the main screen as the image came through.

“What on earth?” One scientist muttered.

“It looks like Midoriya-kun has found another “Upgrade”.” Nezu theorized. 

“Now he looks like a real hero!” All Might exclaimed.

“What on earth are you blabbering about?” Endeavor questioned as his “team” walked back in. They all glanced at the View Screen. “What has your foolish boy done now?”

“As far as we can tell, he’s gotten another Upgrade.” A scientist informed them. “And it looks like he’s reach the end of the Network.”

//---[Izuku PoV]---//

God damn I don’t know how Hub does this! I’m exhausted! Then again, my body isn’t digital so I do have the limitations of a human. Still, I’m going to eat like four cows after this! They've been getting too uppity lately  and need a reminder.

I slowly crept up to the control deck of the Comp. My eyes widen as I see my classmates stuck inside of four tubes. I growled. “Show yourself!”

“You! You smell of him! The one who defeated us so long ago!” A voice exclaimed,

“What?” Why did that voice sound so...familiar? And I smell of him?

“You smell of that brat Mega Man!” the voice replied as a beam of light landed in front of me. My eyes widen. 

“Shade Man?!” It was ShadeMan.exe in the digital flesh!

“So you've heard of me? Interesting. And you look like the brat too.” ShadeMan replied with a frown.

“What’s your endgame, Shade Man?” I need to figure out how he even got here and why he kidnapped my classmates.

“This world is fascinating, you know? Humans with abilities like Navis in the real world! We were drawn here by the Darkness of a man, not unlike the Darkness of Nebula Grey.” He explained. “This World is slightly primitive, but it has the resources we need to take over beyond the Network.”

Fuck! Fuckity fuck fuck! “And how do you plan to do that?” That’s right, keep’em monologuing. 

“With the information we got from this simulation, we can begin production of our new Dark Chips! But that’s all you’ll ever learn, brat.”

“The names Rockman, batboy.” I corrected him.

“You’re deleted, that’s what you are!”

He lunged at me with a screech. I dodged to the side, and fired at him. He faded to black before vanishing before my eyes. Ah shit that’s right! Projectiles don’t work on him...unless….

“Die!” I rolled to the side, dodging his bats and banished my buster. 

I got one shot at this. He lunged at me again but this time I was ready. I leaped up and planted my hand in his face. It connected!

“What?!” He screamed confused.

Oh boy, I have to say it. “Now I got your power!” I absorbed part of his ability and- why do I feel ill? Oh shit, I forgot he’s a darkloid! They’re made out of Dark Data! Ugh!

“What did you do to me brat?!”

I’m pretty sure I’m going to be sick. “Shut up and eat this!” I willed my hand to a buster. “Dark Nitro!” I watched as Shade Man screamed in agony as miniature explosions erupted across his body. I looked down at my hand as a dark energy flowed around it for a second. That wasn't good…

“GYAAAH! Damn you Rockman!” Shade Man screeched as he floated away in pain. “I got what I wanted! You can keep these humans!” He spat before he logged out of the network.

I let out a sigh of relief. I knew things were going to get rough but this...Darkloids in this world? I shook my head. I’ll have to work things out later. I went up to the capsules and released my team one by one. They were unconscious but alive, that’s all that mattered. I then walked up to the control panel and turned off the simulation. Right before my eyes the entire “network” faded to black and we were back in the original simulation room. I fell backwards onto my back and laid there as I heard the door opening and several people rushing in. “Somebody, get me like...20cc’s of burger stat.” I groaned out tired. I closed my eyes for a moment before a hand touched my shoulder. I opened my eyes. “Hey Sensei...I did a hero thing, I want like a lot of food.”

I watched as Sensei chuckled. “We’ll get you some food, Izuku.” He said. “But we need to get you out of that armor  first.”

Oh...yeah...somehow I kept the Armor. Well, now that I have time to think about it, it's part of my body now...damn it! I sighed and tapped my Navi Mark. The Armor disappeared from my body in a flash of lights. “AHHHHHHHH FUCK!” OH THE PAIN!  ALL THAT DAMAGE I TOOK FROM THE VIRUSES LEADING UP TO SHADE MAN! OW!

“Izuku, language!” Sensei admonished

“Sensei, pain!” I gritted back. Everything was growing dark. “Wait, never mind, my body is going numb.”

“Izuku, I’m pretty sure your body is going to shock.” Nezu pointed out.

“Let me have this moment.” I slurred out before everything went black.

A few hours later, I found myself in a hospital bed. The sun was setting. I’m pretty sure my mom and Satsuki was near. I had this feeling climbing up my spine, like death did the Cha Cha slide down it. “Oh, Izuku, you’re awake!” I turned to see Momo and Akari walking into my room. 

“Unfortunately. Too much sun came through that window.” I was running on empty as is and while the sun helped, my body still craved food.  “You ladies doing alright?”

“Yeah…” Akari replied quietly. “We heard that you saved us from that digital nightmare.”

“They also said you fought the villain that did that to us.” Momo added.

“That thing was no villain.” I replied with a sigh. “That was a monster.” I mean what else could you explain the Darkloids? They were AIs created from the darkness of one man’s soul. “It’s only a shame I couldn’t stop him from leaving with the data he stole.”

“Do you mind telling us what he was?” Momo asked curiously.

“I’m pretty sure the heroes are listening in, and probably sent you ladies in to make me comfortable so I’ll spill what I know.” I grin weakly as both girls blushed embarrassed, caught. “No worry, I’ll say what I know.”

I took a deep breath. “From the data he left traveling along the network, I pieced together at least an identity of what I was dealing with. Shade Man is an Advanced AI known as a Net Navi. To be specifically, He’s a Darkloid.”

“A Darkloid?” Akari questioned.

“From the data I stole from him, I caught a glimpse of what he was. An AI infused with the Dark Soul of someone truly evil. I mean real vile stuff.” I looked down at my hand. “I’m pretty sure I’m infected by it now as well. I stole his data after all.”

“So what does the Dark Soul do?” Both girls screamed in fright as Nezu was standing on a chair nearby. We didn’t even hear him come in.

“For Darkloids, its a source of power. For me...well...its corruption. It’s not going to weaken me in any way, but it will tempt me if I get weakened, like during a prolonged fight or near death. It’s  going to tempt me to use it’s energy. And the more energy I use, the more corrupted i’ll be.” That was the best way I could explain it. 

“What’s going to keep you from using it?” Akari questioned with narrowed eyes. “ Forgive me for saying this, but you don’t seem the type to ignore a source of power.”

Ouch. “You really don’t know me well.” I replied. “I’d rather not go berserk and kill everything around me. Cause that’ll happen if I use too much Dark Soul.” Akari flinched at that. “Anyways, is that enough for you?”

“For now. I suspect that you’ll want to fight these Darkloids whenever they pop up, so I’ll talk with the government about that. Until then, rest well Midoriya-kun.” We watched as Nezu quietly left the room.

“He’s not serious right?” Momo questioned concerned. “You’re not going to fight these guys again are you?”

“Even if I don’t want to, Shade Man has my scent. He’ll find me, and want to kill me. Besides, I wouldn’t be a hero if I didn’t expect danger.”

“You’re not a hero.” Akari pointed out bluntly.

“Fair enough.” I replied. Fucking Kuuderes. “However, that isn’t going to change the fact  that they’ll be after me and those around me. I rather be a reckless fool than a coward.”

Akari opened her mouth to say something, paused, then frowned. “How did you do that?”

“Do what?” Momo questioned.

“How did I know you were going to call me a reckless fool?” I smirked. “Well…”

“Well?” The girls parroted.

“That’s a secret.” I laughed at their pouts. Sorry ladies, nobody needs to know that I’m a secret student to the Joseph Joestar School of Verbal Trolling.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Izuku's Current Weapons and References:
> 
> Nitro Blast - Weapon Obtained from Satsuki [Origin: Trinitro Man - Mega Man Unlimited]  
> Noise Crush - Weapon Obtained from Jirou [Origin: Shade Man - Mega Man VII]  
> Dark Nitro - Corrupted Nitro Blast [Origin: Dark Spreader Chip - Mega Man Battle Network 4]


	5. Everyday People

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A more calm, fun filled look into a day in a life of Izuku

//---[Normal PoV]---//

Izuku sighed as he looked up at the ceiling of his room. The dull roar of the towns hustle and bustle was muted by the closed window, and only a part of the room was illuminated by the daylight from outside. He was grounded. He couldn’t blame his mother for it. He honestly welcomed the silence of his own room. It allowed him to think, and clear his mind. More importantly, it saved him from building any more relationship points with the small harem of girls that wanted a piece of him.

Satsuki, understandably, was pissed to find out that other women wanted to get to know him better. Honestly he didn’t think he was that attractive or deserved the attention from any of the girls who texted him over the last few days.

_ ‘Honestly, I’m not sure if I’m overthinking it.’ _ the teen thought as he looked at his cellphone. Several new messages from Momo, Kyoka, Akari, and Satsuki.

Momo seemed to value his input on things, he figured, once her barriers came down and she relaxed in her messages. She would often text him about her quirk and what could she do to improve it, as well as combat suggestions. Maybe it was just a quirk (Izuku snorted) of hers, but she always thanked him with a lot of heart emojis.   _ ‘Girls and texting is weird. Whatever happened to just calling a person?’  _ voiced the older side of his mind. 

Kyoka, she was a weird one at first. She was always blunt in her messages, but once Izuku mentioned his tastes in music, the girl opened up as well. They would send each other music, and talk about what they liked about current chart toppers. Izuku’s tastes was more broader than hers, her being mostly influenced by her parents and his was merely because he enjoyed a lot more than rock and classical. His like of hip hop and jazz confused her, but he had shared some tasteful music with her and she was liking some of it as well. 

Akari...well she was Todoroki as a girl. He didn’t expect much, but she did often vent to him about her dad, and more often than not, shared small things the man said about him. He hated the fact that Akari wanted to get to know him better, and would often grumble about how his quirk wasn’t even worth breeding with. This of course amused Izuku, and he silently thought of ways to troll Endeavor. _ ‘I’m going to be Tien to his Vegeta, and it will be glorious! _ ’ he mentally cackled, referencing Dragon Ball Z Abridged.

And finally Satsuki...the firecracker was not happy Aunty Inko banned her from seeing her “Deku”. Parsing through her usual insults came a plethora of half compliments and flirts that also amused Izuku. Poor girl didn’t know if she wanted to kill the boy or make love to him. True to his word, he often dropped heavy innuendos to get the girl to calm down and speak to him like a normal person...well at least he did until Aunty Mitsuki called him to “stop making her baby girl burn through phones, it was getting expensive”. It was hilarious, but he did promise to pay her back.

Izuku put his phone down and let out a chuckle. He didn’t know how he was going to survive UA, the normal plot, and whatever the hell the darkloids was doing. Honestly he wished he could just hop into the net and investigate. 

_ ‘Or maybe...I can!’ _ Izuku thought as he sat up.  _ ‘I absorbed so much data maybe I could...I don’t know, hop onto the net and pop out like ShadeMan did!’ _ He rolled out of bed and moved to his laptop before pausing.  _ ‘Hold on...if I try this while I’m grounded, and mom finds out, then I’ll be grounded for life.’  _ Izuku sighed.  _ ‘Being a teen sucks ass.’ _ He grumbled. Despite having memories of his past life, he really did care for his new mother. He was a total mama’s boy after all. Grunting annoyed at his less than rebellious streak, he got up and left his room. He was getting hungry anyways and honestly, the lack of direct sunlight meant his stomach needed to be sated. 

Leaving his room and heading to the kitchen, he was surprised to see Toshinori talking with his mother. “Oh hey Sensei, didn’t know you came in.”  He greeted lazily. He paused as he saw the look on his mother’s face. It wasn’t a happy look. In fact, she looked like she had been crying “Okay, what happened?”

“Oh Izuku…” She muttered. “I don’t know how to tell you this...but your father...he...he…” Izuku frowned as she broke down crying again.

Turning to his sensei, he raised an eyebrow. “Well?”

“Well,” Toshinori began. He looked nervous. “I had did a background check on you, you know to see what your home life was.”

“Fair enough, but skip to the part about my old man.” Izuku was practical after all, he expected All Might to act like a hero.

“We found out that he’s been cheating on your mother, and you have a four year old half brother.” Toshinori announced.

Izuku blinked before shrugging. “Cool.” he replied before heading to the refrigerator.

“Cool?!” Both adults exclaimed in shock at how nonchalant Izuku’s response was.

“Izuku aren’t you upset?” His mother asked him.

“Oh absolutely livid.” He replied from behind the refrigerator door. “I’m keeping calm right now because the only thing stopping me from finding out where that bastard old man is and breaking him is the fact that I don’t want to leave you alone mom.” He closed the door and turned to the adults. Both of them gasped in shock. Izuku’s eyes were glowing red and his skin had taken on a pale complexion. “I’ve always suspected that asshole didn’t care about us, but he should have had the balls to divorce mom. If Hisashi shows his face around here, he’ll regret it.”

“Izuku…” Toshinori muttered, slightly frightened.

“Don’t worry sensei, I won’t kill him. No, death is too easy of a way out.” A grin slowly grew on his face. “I’ll make him suffer and live with his debt to us.”

“Izuku no!” Inko got up and hugged him. Toshinori watched as a dark mist evaporated from his face and his skin and eyes returned to normal.

“Huh?” Izuku stuttered out. He looked down. “Uh...mom, why are you hugging me?”

“Izuku...are you okay?” She asked looking at her baby boy. Toshinori got up as well.

“I guess? I mean did something happen?” Izuku questioned confused.

“I think the Dark Soul activated.” Toshinori said frowning. “Your skin turned pale and your eyes glowed red, and you seemed to want to torture your father.”

Izuku’s eyes widen for a moment before relaxing. “I see…so the Dark Soul is that potent huh. I must of stole a lot of darkness from ShadeMan…I don’t even remember the last few moments.” and then his stomach growled. “Yeah no, shut up stomach, this is not the time for your tomfoolery.”

“You sound hungry Izu-kun.” His mother said laughing a little, glad her little boy was back to normal.

“I wouldn’t be if it wasn’t for the fact I was grounded.” Izuku pointed out with a pout. “I like eating the Sun, it’s a tasty laser.”

Both adults looked at him. “What does the sun taste like?” Toshinori asked curious. Neither adult had ever heard of anyone actually photosynthesizing before.

“Maybe it’s just me, but it tastes like my favorite dish, Katsudon.” He answered with a smile. “The way I figure it, the sun always tastes whatever you enjoy but fresher.”

“Well let me whip you up some then.” Inko said. She needed to take her mind off of the situation anyways, and keep her son from becoming a murderer. She was told about the Dark Soul, but to see it first hand...and poor Izuku was oblivious to what he was saying or doing either. “Toshinori-san, please join us.”

Toshi smiled. “Thank you, I think I will.”

Izuku just smiled a little and sat down at the table. He’d worry about the Dark Soul and Net Jumping later. Now? Now is time for Katsudon.

The next day found Izuku on his favorite training beach in swim trunks. The sun was out and it was hot, a comfortable thirty-five degrees celsius. Most people would think that it’s too hot, but he’s literally eating the sun. The more sun the better! Besides, since no one really came to this mini beach, he can practice the one thing he’s been putting off for a while; learning how to swim.

‘I find it terrible that in both lives, I’ve never learned how to swim.’ he thought with a sulk. Still, it was valuable skill to have, unless his armored mode came with a rebreather or something. ‘Nah, Hub didn’t have it, and I’m not a robot like Classic or X.’ He mused. With a mental shake of his head, he ran into the ocean and dove in.

He found himself sinking a little before something activated. He could feel it. Opening his eyes, he widened.  _ ‘I have a personal visor?! When was this a thing?!’  _ Maybe he lost more of his humanity than he thought. It was like a small strip of glass has formed over his eyes, protecting it from the water and giving him information. He could scan small objects and have their distance marked, but since he wasn’t fully techno, he couldn’t connect to the internet and get information.

He shivered as a silent  **‘yet’** reverberated inside his mind. The more rational side of him was freaking out. He was becoming less and less human and yet… 

The logical side of him merely brushed it off like it was a foregone conclusion.  _ ‘Victor, Genji, I understand you more and more guys.’ _ He thought morosely. Victor Stone, also known as the DC hero Cyborg struggled with the duality of being half man and half machine and the struggles he had growing up as a African American as well. Genji Shimada suffered from that duality as well, being part man, part omnic.

Izuku got to the surface, taking a deep breath as he did.  _ ‘I was under a very long time. I’m kind of surprised at how long I could hold my breath. Then again my ‘systems’ regulated my breathing and lungs so I could possibly last longer if need be.  Ugh I am a freak…’  _ He sighed as lounged backwards, floating in the ocean.  _ ‘I’m not sure how much of that negativity was really me or the dark soul...I hate this.’  _

He was a mess, but he couldn’t let it get to him. He needed to work through it, he had no choice now. Straightening out, he slowly swam to the shore and climbed out of the water. He allowed himself to stretch and relax.

“Oh my!” A voice stuttered out. Izuku quickly looked down to make sure his swim trunks were still there. They were. He visibly relaxed in relief before turning to the owner of the voice.

“Hey Momo, Jirou.” Izuku greeted with a wave, carefully ignoring the blush on Momo’s face and the smirk on Jirou’s. Apparently Momo wasn’t used to seeing so much boy skin at once. “What brings you to my neck of the woods?”

“We came by to see you, but your mom said you came down here to get some sun.” Jirou replied approaching the boy. “Man when you said you needed sun to heal, you weren’t kidding. We expected you to be bruised up still, but you look like you weren’t even hurt at all.”

“I got better during house arrest, but I spent most of it relaxing, much to Sensei’s surprise.” Izuku replied. All Might admitted that he expected Izuku to go looking for the Darkloids, but he waved it off. ‘If habit proved true, they’d show up anyways.; he thought to himself.

Momo smiled trying to suppress her blush. “So, you were swimming?” She asked awkwardly.

“Yeah. Who knows if I have to save someone by swimming, so getting some practice in is always good.” He admitted, not telling them that he was just learning and getting his feet wet. “Let me get dressed and  we can go grab some lunch, my treat.”

“Alright, but no rush; take your time.” Jirou said with an amused grin on her face. She then grabbed Momo by the hand. “Come on, Momo, you can enjoy the eye candy later.”

“But I wasn’t-” Momo began to stutter out excuses but Jirou wasn’t having any of that.

Izuku sighed, amused. Momo clearly had dere tendencies, so did Jirou. When did he get surrounded by so many deres so quickly?

A short while later, Izuku was dressed and they were eating lunch at a local cafe. Izuku honestly couldn’t understand how he got into this situation. The Cafe itself was mundane enough but somehow it turned out to be a date with two girls? At least that’s how the other single guys in the cafe was acting. _‘It’s not like these girls think its a date right?’_ He mentally prayed. _‘Then again, I think I might have contracted Ranma-itis somehow.’_

“You okay, Izuku?” Momo asked. She had ordered a simple salad dish while Jirou and himself ordered something a bit more filling; Jirou ordered a club sandwich while he ordered a chicken tender sandwich. Though he barely touched it.

“I’m alright, just trying to figure out how to get out of this cafe alive.” He joked. “Every single guy in this cafe seemed to think I’m on a date with both of you.” 

Jirou understandably choked on her drink while Momo looked embarrassed. “What?!” Jirou questioned incredulously. 

“Hey, I told you two, you’re both attractive, and little ole unassuming me with two hot girls...well idiots are going to go wild.” Izuku commented before taking a few bites of his sandwich. 

“How can you say that about yourself?” Jirou questioned with a frown.

“I’m not a stand out guy.” He replied with a shrug. “I didn’t go for any clubs or anything in Middle School, just stuck to myself (as much as possible), did my work, and went home.”

“Where does Satsuki come in?” Momo asked curiously. “From our brief interaction, she seems to be rather attached to you.”

“She’s a tsundere with an explosive temper due to her Quirk personality. Even so we’ve known each other since we were small. Honestly I’m surprised I’m alive after all these years.” Izuku replied with a shrug. “I’m surprised she hasn’t gone full Yandere on me.”

“I guess that’s one way to look at her personality.” Jirou commented. “Do you classify everyone as a “dere” or is she special?”

“Everyone. It’s much easier to just classify people like that rather getting into their psychological profiles. I’m not a psychiatrist, nor am I a doctor, so I’m not paid to diagnose things like that.” He took a sip of his drink. “Besides I’m not to lock myself down in a relationship with someone who can’t even properly look me in the eyes and tell me they care for me. I’m not a mind reader after all.”

“You’re the salt of the Earth, Zuku.” Jirou rolled her eyes. “You have no sense of romance do you?”

“The girl sweats nitroglycerin from her hands and threatens to murder me in every other text because she refuses to reign in her temper, and we live in a world where “Death By Quirks” Is in the top five most causes of death. I can be just as romantic as the next guy, but it’s not going to override my self preservation.” Izuku deadpanned before going back to his sandwich.

Jirou side eyed Momo, who was taking a sip of her drink. “So, you’re afraid of losing your “little Izuku”?”

“Who said it was little?” Came the automatic response from Izuku...who then immediately  got a face full of sweet tea courtesy of an thoroughly embarrassed Momo. Jirou held her stomach as she laughed.

“Oh my god, Izuku, I am so sorry!” Momo apologizes as she lifted her shirt to make a towel.

“It’s fine, put your shirt down!” Izuku yelped, his face red and covered in tea before he glared at Jirou. “You’re despicable.” he announced, Daffy Duck inflection included. Jirou just kept laughing. At least the guys weren’t glaring at Izuku anymore. 

A short while later, Izuku found himself back at the Beach. He had walked Jirou and Momo home, as they both had things to do. Izuku was once again stripped of his clothes and back in his Swim Trunks. _‘Time to test out my Rockman Form.’_ He paused. _‘Should I have an activation phrase for it? Old me would have found it cheesy, but in a world full of heroes and villains, sometimes a little cheese goes a long way.’_ He decided to give it a shot.

“Rockman, Power Up!” He announced as green energy flowed out of him and formed his armor, visor included. “...ugh that hurt my soul.” He lamented quietly. “Alright, time to test if this Armor can work under water.” 

With a step he leaped into the air, surprised about the high he gained before landing into the ocean. _‘Good news, he thought to himself, the Armor and suit is waterproof. Bad news is that I sink like a stone.’_ He thought has he landed on the seafloor. He wasn’t that deep though, thank goodness. He could still see ground for miles and when he looked up he could still see the sun as clear as day, so he was still early in the Epipelagic Zone, at least eight meters underneath the sea. Looking at his visor, he could see that he had an Air Meter displayed as a percent and it was full. _‘I’ve been here for at least two minutes, so that’s not a test. Still, let’s test movement.’_

After a few tests, he found that he was a bit sluggish underwater, but not to an extent he thought he would be. It was like he was moving wearing semi-light weights rather than being pushed down by the gravity and volume of the ocean. He looked at his Air Meter and it was still relatively full, at least eighty-six percent. _‘Huh, the suit must be providing me air at least. Its been at least thirty minutes’_. He thought. Still, this was a good test for his suit, he figured he should head back to the shore. With a few placed jumps he was back at the beach he started at...and he had another visitor. “Oh hey Sensei.” Izuku greeted as his suit powered down and faded away. 

“Training hard, Izuku?” Toshinori said approaching him. 

“More like experimenting.” The boy admitted with a grin. “I can work underwater with my suit!”

Toshinori’s eyes widen. “You were testing your suit underwater?!”

“Yep, well at first I came down here to practice swimming, but then I thought “what if I had to rescue someone underwater due to a flood or something” and so I armored up and dove right in!” Izuku explained with his eyes shining. “It’s so cool down there Sensei, my armor seems to generate oxygen for me to breath and I got this cool new visor to protect my eyes and target things, and I’m not even bothered by the water, I could totally fight underwater!’

Toshinori was shocked at first by the childlike outburst that  came from his normally sarcastic and intelligent student. But then he grinned. This was the Izuku that let his guard down, who was more open and honest, he guessed. “Alright, calm down. I didn’t think you had it in you to be so cheerful, kid.”

Izuku blushed as he realized he gushed like that. “I..er...you know…” he looked away before his shoulder slumped. “I thought it was cool…”

Toshinori laughed, patting Izuku on the head. “Let me guess, you told me because you thought I would be proud of you right?” 

Izuku’s face got redder. “Er...I mean...yeah...you’re my Sensei right? What student wouldn’t want to make his Sensei proud?”

“Good ones, and I am proud of you, Izuku.” Toshinori said with a smile. He then paused as he noticed that Izuku began to tear up at that. “Hey, you okay kid?”

Izuku sniffed. “No, I’m fine.” He stuttered out wiping his eyes. “It’s just...when you said that...and all of this...I kind of thought…’Yeah, I made my dad proud’ and then it hit me that...some man I met months ago who didn’t even know I existed has been more of a father to me than the man who help made me…”

Toshinori just patted Izuku on  the head. “You’ve been hurting more than you let on, haven’t you Izuku?”

“Yeah…” Izuku replied softly. “Its just...I really didn’t want to think about it, but when you told my mom and I about him...how he has another kid...I felt...angry for mom, but then...it really didn’t hit me until later that he just replaced us…he threw us away so easily with a lie and a smile…”

“Izuku, listen to me.” He kneeled down a little to look Izuku in the eye. “He may have done so, but it’s his loss. He failed to see how wonderful a woman your mother is or how amazing of a man you’re growing to be. I’m proud to call you my student, kid, and...I wouldn’t mind at all if you called me dad, even in public. You and your mother deserve to smile too you know.”

Izuku simply hugged the man and Toshinori hugged him back. “Thank you…” Izuku whispered. 

Toshi patted his back. “It’s alright, Izuku.”

“...you do realize now you have to date my mom to make it official right?” Izuku questioned. Toshi didn’t have to see the boy’s face to know that he was smiling mischievously. “I accept nothing less than Plus Ultra commitment.”

“Ah-well...you see…” Toshi stuttered out, trying to find words to counter his troublesome student.

“She already finds you charming, you know,”

“You’re going to be the death of me kid.” Toshi sighed as Izuku laughed. Today was a good day.


	6. The Power of Darkness Part 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A dreary day? Or something more? Find out in Part One of this Two Part Chapter

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh hey, feel free to give me feedback about anything or ask me questions! I like hearing about stuff like that. Also, I am now contractually obligated to plug that I now have a patreon everywhere I go because I'm assuming that's what people do with Patreons. They just...advertise the crap out of it until someone throws money at them to shut up.

//---[???]---//

A man sitting in a dark room, looking at a monitor. “So you’re saying you’ve dealt with a being like this before? Should I be worried about my plans?”

“Not at all. It means we have an eventual ally.” Another voice assured smoothly. “I can already feel his darkness growing. He’s far more corruptible than the original, perhaps malleable as well…”

“I see…” The man let out a hum. “My student does not like the fact that we have joined forces, he feels like you will ruin his game.”

“His game only benefits him, not you, or us...we see the bigger picture. Our kind can spread our influence  father and faster than your student can.”

“Then let’s see it then.” The man demanded softly. “Let’s see how far your darkness can spread.”

“Very well…” A light shines down not too far from the man and a being riding a cloud forms. “CloudMan. Please show our benefactor the extent of our power in this new world.”

“At once master.” CloudMan then disappeared. 

“Let us see what happens now.”

//---[With Izuku]---//

“Another cloudy day, Izuku?” Inko questioned

Izuku was slumped over at the kitchen table looking drained. He hadn’t been in the sun in a few days and he was feeling quite drained. “Yeah...the weather report said it's going to be a cloudy day but I didn’t think it was going to be a cloudy week. I might head down to the convenience store and stock up on Energy Drinks so I don’t fall asleep in the middle of nowhere.” Inko walked over to her son and ruffled his hair.

“I never realized how much you depended on the sun, dear. Maybe this is a good time to work on eating like a normal person.” She said with a small smile. “You know when you were a baby, I used to make this wonderful soup that you enjoyed.”

Izuku’s face scrunched up. “Eh...you mean that Fish Head Soup?” Izuku liked seafood as much as the next person but...fish head soup? “No thanks, but if you could whip up something without fish heads in it, I’ll eat it.”

Inko laughed. “Alright, but let me know if you change your mind. So what do you plan on doing today?” She went over to the living area to sit down. They lived in such a small apartment but it was their home.

“Thought I’d go for a walk. Maybe finally face the music and see Satsuki.”

“Ah yes...poor girl was so distraught when she found out you went out on a date with two girls.”

“It wasn’t a date, I was being nice and treated them to lunch since they came all the way to see me.” Izuku kept insisting, but poor him and Satsuki’s dad were the only two guys versus three women. He had a feeling that he wasn’t going to win this argument. ‘Where’s Iida when you need him?’ he mused morbidly. He got up from the table and headed over to the door. He slipped his shoes on. “I’ll see you later mom, and if Satsuki calls tell her to call me.”

“Oh I will~!” Inko replied amused.

Izuku grumbled at her amused tone before heading out. Once out of his apartment building and on the streets, he headed to the nearest convenience store to  grab an energy drink. Izuku was always a frugal person, saving his lunch money rather spending it. He survived on sunlight mostly so normal foods other than his favorites never appealed to him, though he did eat if only to seem human.

Human, that seemed to be a sticking point for him. He was feeling more and more inhuman and it bothered him. Not to mention with the Darkness growing in him. He couldn’t compartmentalize his emotions anymore, too dangerous. And he had to watch what angered him as well. This dreary weather wasn’t helping either. So lost in his thoughts, he wasn’t watching where he was going.

“Oof! Ow...what are you made of?” Izuku blinked and looked down to see a younger looking boy with brown hair. 

“Sorry bout that, man, here let me help you up.” Izuku offered his hand and the boy took it. “Wasn’t looking where I was going.” He let go once the boy was on his feet. He realized that the boy was slightly shorter than him, but had to be his age at least.

“No problem.” Boy said cheerfully. “So what’s got your head in the clouds?”

Izuku grinned. “The clouds really. Cloudy days aren’t my thing. The name’s Izuku. Midoriya Izuku.”

“My name Is Uraraka Chiharu, nice to meet you, Izuku!” The other teen introduced enthusiastically.

‘Uraraka…’ Glancing at the boys face closely. _‘Holy crap, its Ochako! But MALE?!’_

“Is there something on my face?” The boy questioned rubbing it.

“No, I mean...sometimes my quirk activates and I’m locked in a thought loop!” Izuku quickly said laughing embarrassed. “It’s a pain having a quirk that makes your brain like a computer sometimes.” He admitted awkwardly. 

“Oh jeez, that does sound like a pain.” Chiharu said scratching his head. “So what were you thinking about- wait! Is it private? I don’t want to pry since we just met.”

“It is a little personal.” Izuku admitted. He wasn’t comfortable talking about his issues with anyone, not yet anyways. 

“I won’t pry then!” Chiharu grinned.

Suddenly a rumble of thunder could be heard. Izuku looked up before sighed. “Looks like it’ll rain soon.” His eyes then widen before he leaped at Chiharu. “Get down!” Izuku yelled knocking them both down to the ground.

“Wha-” Chiharu eyes widen as something struck a  street sign across the street before it exploded. Both boys got up and look at the literal crater that was sign and the surrounding area. “What the heck?!”

“That wasn’t normal lightning.” Izuku said with wide eyes. He grabbed Chiharu’s arm and pulled him into  the nearby building. “Damn it, I knew something was wrong! That cloud cover didn’t seem kosher.”

“What do you mean?” Chiharu asked confused and scared. But Izuku was on his phone. “Who are you calling?”

“My dad.” Was Izuku’s reply before the phone picked up. 

**[Izuku, what’s up?]** said a deep voice. Chiharu wondered why his new friend's dad sounded familiar but didn't question it.

“Me and a friend of mine nearly got roasted alive by a lightning bolt.” Izuku replied. “It wasn’t a normal lightning bolt either, it was aimed and was powerful enough to crater the nearby area.” 

[Are there other civilians around?!] the man questioned with urgency

“I’ll check.” Izuku replied before sticking his head out. “If there was, then they’ve all bailed.”

“I can see the crater from here, it’s collapsed part of the street.” Chiharu added.

**[Then that definitely wasn’t normal. What are you thinking?]**

“I’m pretty sure whatever did isn’t _normal_ , it might be _them_.” Izuku was speaking in code, hoping All Might would get it.

[Hrmm...It pains me to say it but you have to suit up and get to Sci-Lab. Then we can figure out what to do next.] Came his father’s response.

“Right. Chiharu.” The brown haired teen looked at his friend. “You should be safe here, but I have to go.”

“Why?” Chiharu asked before his eyes widen. “You’re a hero aren’t you?!”

On the line All Might wondered how his son would handle this. He wasn’t a licensed hero, however he was the only one who had experience in dealing with what could be happening. 

“I will be.” Izuku answered diplomatically. “But I’m currently apprenticed to Sci-Lab as a technician, and my sensei wants me to attend UA before I go pro.”  All Might sighed in relief. He handled that well. “And my Quirk is suited for unnatural phenomenon like this.”

“Alright!” Izuku glad that Chiharu bought it. “But be careful! I want to see my new friend at UA too!” 

Izuku grinned and offered a fist. Chiharu grinned back and fist bumped him.  “Alright.” Foregoing the painfully corny power up sequence, Izuku donned his armor. “Be careful getting home dude.” Izuku exited the building and started running towards Sci Lab.

“So cool…” Chiharu whispered in awe.

//---[With All Might]---//

“Looks like we were right.” He said hanging up the phone, looking over to the Sci-Lab Technicians and Heroes gathered. This time it was Only Endeavor and Snipe. “Izuku just reported a lightning strike strong enough to sink a part of a street.”

“We’re seeing reports of similar lighting strikes targeting pros working in the city. Injuries are rising, and one confirmed dead.” There was a brief silence. “It was a young man, age fifteen, Minoru Mineta. Apparently he was helping out a hero with his Pop off Quirk when the Lightning struck him dead on.”

“Damn it!” All Might growled slamming his fist into a table denting it.

“Calm down.” Endeavor told the man. “Getting upset doesn’t help the fallen get justice.” 

All Might sighed. The man had a point. But still…

“We don’t know anything about the perpetrator who did it.” Snipe commented off to the side. “Do you think your apprentice knows?”

“Honestly he was just as shocked as we were when this happened. He’s probably pissed too.”

“Why is that?”

“My student practically lives off sunlight. Now that he knows this cloud cover isn’t natural, he’ll more than happily take his anger out on the villain behind this.”

Endeavor mentally sighed. ‘I can’t believe my daughter is interested in such an idiot.’

//---[With Izuku]---//

Izuku was cursing himself. Why didn’t he see this coming? All the signs were there! The clouds looked too dark to be natural, and there was no sunlight getting through. And even if it was, clouds that dark should have given out some rain! 

“Oh shit!” He exclaimed as he dodged another lightning bolt. “Hah! You missed me! Why don’t you show yourself and we can handle this, one on one!” He taunted.

All he got was another lightning bolt for his trouble. At least they weren’t exploding the ground anymore. He figured out that whatever threw that first bolt was really aiming for him.  He rolled out of the way before aiming his buster and firing. His eyes widen as it hit what looked like a barrier of some kind. 

“What the…” he turned on his visor and looked at the sky. There was some sort of light web over the city. _‘That’s right! The data ShadeMan stole! They’re probably using some sort of module to allow them to manifest outside the network. The sheer amount of power needed would be astronomical…however…’_ The Dark Soul didn’t have a power limit nor did drain fast enough to not be considered a Power Source for Darkloids. _‘Hard Light constructs, powered by the Dark Soul, and they can manifest themselves on a scale that normal Quirks couldn’t achieve’_. It was brilliant, yet scary.

Dodging another bolt, he looked for his phone, he needed to make a call. “Damn it, where does my phone go when I go Rock-” before he could finish his frustrated grumble, he saw something pop up on his visor. “Oh. Call All Might.” He was surprised  that the phone was ringing, but that didn’t stop him from dodging another bolt. ‘Come on, pick up!’ 

**[Izuku, where are you?]** All Might asked concerned.

“No time, put me on speaker!” Izuku demanded.

//---[At Sci Lab]---//

“Alright, you’re on speaker.”

**[Thanks sense- whoa!]** A crackaboom could be heard over the phone. [Right! Scientist guys, was there an algorithm, some sort of monitoring system in place in the simulation?]

“Yes, it tracked everything the simulation did, from what shapes it took, to the texture, and the reactions to the people within the simulator. It was highly sophisticated.” came an answer from a rather young looking Scientist with brown hair and glasses. 

“Why are you asking such a pointless question?” Endeavor asked with a frown.

**[Ugh, I don’t have time for this, hothead so listen up. From what I gathered from ShadeMan’s data, the Dark Soul is both the physical manifestation of pure evil and a power source, a dangerous one at  that.]** Izuku told them. **[It has the ability to Propagate on a scale based not only on the intent on the user, but the feelings around the user, like other people’s emotions like fear, anger, etcetera. What we’re seeing is a Darkloid now armed with probably a mini hardlight emitter being powered by a Dark Soul.]**

Everyone eyes widen as that. “Is that possible?” Snipe questioned.

“It’s possible.” the brown haired scientist said with a frown. 

“What do you mean Yuichiro?” Another man asked.

“I went over the data left behind by ShadeMan when Rockman last fought him. It was easy to in fact considering that there’s not a system within a hundred mile radius that didn’t get touched by ShadeMan’s presence. I’m surprised that the servers didn’t crash from the influx of data.” Yuchiro explained. 

**[I figured that might have been the case. The Average brain is said to be an equivalent of two point five petabytes of data. ShadeMan was as close as human that a program can get.]** Izuku confirmed. **[That said, I think this Darkloid might be an Weather one of some sort and is hiding above the clouds.]**

“Above it?” All Might questioned

There was another lightning strike. [His accuracy sucks too. The clouds are so thick that no lights can penetrate  I tried firing a shot but it simply absorbed it. I need something more powerful and precise to pierce it.]

“Are you almost  here Rockman? I have an idea.”

**[I’m about eight minutes away, less if I use Speed Gear. I've been trying to stay away from areas people might be and dodging-]** another lightning strike was heard.  **[Those! That one nearly fried me!]**

“Do it.” Endeavor commanded. “Too many people have been hurt for you to be lollygagging around.”

**[He’s using the big words that I’m pretty sure he doesn’t know the meaning of again!]** Izuku replied in a “tattletale” like voice. **[Don’t burn yourself out, sparky. Rockman out.]** the phone hung up. Endeavor’s head caught a flame in anger.

Yuichiro then turned to Snipe. “Mr. Snipe, could you come with me for a second?”

“Sure. What did you have in mind?”

“Rockman got his buster from a program. I think we can use your Quirk and some data to make a new one for him that’ll help out immensely.” 

Curious, Snipe followed the man over to a computer, wondering how the man was going to pull it off.


	7. The Power of Darkness Part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A lot of things happen in this part. I'll be posting notes about everything at the end.

//---[With Izuku]---// 

Izuku was in full Speed Gear as he ran down the streets. The Lightning strikes had stopped, however, he knew that it was only a matter of time before whatever Darkloid was behind this attack start up again. This mastery over the weather had to be a navi made for weather control, he reasoned in his mind. _'CloudMan would be the obvious choice.'_ He thought. _'He's the only Darkloid that I can think of that could control the clouds like that. However, Dark Soul could magnify any Navi's Abilities to an extreme. ElementMan, ThunderMan, or even PlanetMan could be behind this.'_ All three Navis could be recreated by the dark powers. After all, they all worked for World Three, and Dr. Regal might have had data on them at some point. 

_'With that line of thinking, ElecMan could be a threat as well.'_ Izuku grimaced. Really, now that he thought about it, any Navi with the ability to gather clouds or elec element could be a plausible threat. He pushed all that aside as he entered the MLP and walked down to the SciLab portion of the building. He getting close to the command center, he glanced into an open room to see a lounge of some sort. He headed in and sat down on one of the nearby couches, powering down for now. He was exhausted to say the least. 

Normally to get the MLP, he'd take the train as there was a station not too far from there. It was normally a twenty minute train ride to the nearby station, but he went on foot at moderate high speeds. It took him longer, but he couldn't risk getting anyone hurt as the Darkloid was targeting him. But he was tired. A few days without the sun, he didn't think he could beat the Darkloid. 

"There you are." Izuku looked up to see his sensei/father-figure approaching him. "You okay?" 

"Yeah...just tired. I'm working on fumes at this point. Without the sun, I'm only working on normal fuel and it's half as effective." Without the Sun, Izuku's appetite was kind of enormous. Once he had went to a restaurant by himself without dining on the sun, and he spent about Nine-thousand Yen by himself. His body just metabolized biofuel too fast. 

All Might glanced at his student for a moment before coming to a conclusion. Over the last six months, he's shown a level of dedication he honestly didn't think it was possible. His drive, at first, held a level of subtle resignation as if he felt like he had to train out of obligation. But as he threw himself into the training, something had changed. It had vexed Toshinori for a while but then he realized what had changed. 

Izuku as a person, really didn't have many bonds. He really only had his mother, Satsuki and her family. But now he had friends, the kids he met during the test, and several of the pros. He would even stretch and say he cared a little for Endeavor. And himself; Izuku looked up to him like a father! Izuku had something to protect, something to push himself further. 

All Might plucked a hair from his head. "Eat this." 

Izuku looked at the strand of hair in confusion. "...hair?" 

"Yes. If I'm right, your quirk will speed along integrating my own like this." 

Izuku eyes widen. "But I thought-" He was so sure that All Might had found another. They hadn't talked about this in a long time! 

"You were worthy back then, when you rushed recklessly to save Young Satsuki from the Slime Villain, and now you're even more worthy now." 

Izuku accepted the hair, staring at it before swallowing it. "Bleh!" Hair care product taste! Izuku was going to comment on that fact before he clutched his chest. His body felt like it was on fire. Was this One for All?! Is this what it felt like to have that power? All Might knelt to Izuku, gripping the teen's shoulders to steady him 

"Izuku, are you alright?!" Izuku could only guess what All Might was saying because all he heard was muffled noises. His vision soon turned dark. 

//---[???]---// 

Izuku groaned holding his head. "I am too young for a hangover…" He opened his eyes to see that he was in a city. A very non-descript city. "Okay...what's going on?" He muttered confused. He looked around to see where he was exactly before he found himself face to face with someone. "WHA!!!!" 

That someone was a woman with a smile on her face. She had long black hair and gray eyes. "Hey. You must be the ninth inheritor of One for All." 

Izuku was clutching his chest. "I'm pretty sure if you were any closer, One for All would've ended with me." He breathed out, scared out of his mind. "Who are you?" 

"My name is Shimura Nana, the Seventh Inheritor, nice to meet you!" She greeted with a smile. 

"The Seventh...that means you were sensei's sensei.' Izuku guessed. 

"Correct! Now I'm not sure why he chose you to inherit our Quirk, but what I do know is that your Quirk is changing it, which is why you passed out in pain." 

Izuku frowned. "What is it doing?" Changing the quirk? That couldn't be good. 

"From what we can feel, you'll never be able to use One for All at a hundred percent. Your Quirk has adapted half of it to serve as a power core, just like Toshi guessed." 

Izuku blinked. "I guess that's fine. Half the time I don't know if I'm controlling my quirk or is my quirk controlling me, but it seems like it knows what to do." He admitted. "Yeah, having a power core will keep me from tiring out and I could probably deplete it if I do need to go plus ultra on someone." 

Nana grinned. "That's the spirit!" 

Izuku glanced at the woman. "Speaking of spirits, how are you doing this?" 

"When you pass along One for All, a little bit of yourself is passed along too, just to so you can see how our descendants fair and to offer advice." She explained. "But I came here personally because I saw your spirit and the images you bury deep in your mind. You're not from our world are you?" 

"I-" Izuku's voice was caught in his throat before he let out a chuckle. "No, if you can see that deep in my mind, then there's no need to lie or something." He paused. "I died an ignoble death, so many regrets and the powers-that-be thought it would be funny to put the guy who loved to help people out in a world where he can do just that." 

"You've fit right in, and even found a resolve to go beyond yourself, and you've been real humble about it." Nana commented. "I've seen the interactions between you and Satsuki. You've only wanted the best for her, even though you dislike her male counterpart with such intensity." 

"She doesn't deserve to be a one-note individual." He explained with a grimace. "Sure, Katsuki gets his character development and even I can admit that late development is better than none, but he has no chill button which really makes it hard to like the guy. Satsuki has so much going for her if she'd get over her tsundere attitude and stop threatening people." 

"Is that why you've subtly chased away every guy away from her in middle school?" There was a knowing grin on his Sensei's Sensei's face. 

Izuku blushed. "I...maybe?" 

"You've kept yourself at arms length from a lot of girls it seems. Don't." She told him. "You deserve happiness as well." 

"But Harems don't work…" Izuku told her weakly, feeling queasy at the thought. 

"I never said make a harem, but knowing you from what I've seen, you'd find a way to make it work even if it does come to that." Nana placed a hand on his head. "Anyways, I should let you go back before Toshi freaks out. Oh...and do me a favor." She began to frown. 

Izuku looked nervously at what she wanted. Taking favors from the spirits from the beyond never ended well. When she spoke, he his thoughts were validated. 

//---[back with All Might]---// 

"Izuku, speak to me, are you alright?!" All Might was freaking out to be honest. Nothing like this happened when he received One for All! And his Sensei didn't mention anything like this either. Almost like a snap though, Izuku woke up, his eyes wide. "Izuku!" 

"I'm alright, stop shaking me, sensei!" The teen assured his mentor. "Just had to reboot." 

"You look like you were in pain." He pointed out. 

"I was, but I think now that I have a core, I won't feel pain when integrating new Data to my body." Izuku explained. "How long was I out?" 

"Just a scant three minutes, but you should rest-" 

"No, I got this." He said standing up. He powered up and to his surprise, his Armor was no longer green, but now blue! His helmet now had a "V" shape that was trimmed with gold and red with a green gem like fixture in the crook of the "V". His visor was now a permanent fixture on his helmet, now tinted green rather than the black that his previous helmet had. 

"Izuku! Your form has changed!" 

Izuku glanced at his new blue armor, then glanced at his sensei's outfit. "I can dig it. Now I'm ready to take on the Darkloid!" 

All Might smirked. He was worried, but he also had faith in his charge. "Well then, we should go see Yuichiro. He said he had something that might help you." 

Izuku raised an eyebrow. He wondered what the scientist could have created. 

//---[???]---// 

Within a dimly lit bar, a man seethed in anger as he watched the news of the chaos and mayhem the freak storm was causing. Him and the bartender knew that the storm was intentional but it wasn't part of his plan! It was far from his desires. 

"They're ruining my game." the man hissed. 

"Calm yourself Tomura." the bartender chided gently. "HE knows of your plans and I'm sure this would not interfere with your schemes." 

"It's just not fair, Kurogiri! HE knows what we're trying to accomplish! Why would he waste his time with these NPCs?" 

Kurogiri paused. "Perhaps he is seeing their worth." Seeing that he had Tomura's attention he continued. "They are an unknown quantity. They aren't human, but digital beings with powers with Quirks. Maybe he's looking to add to his own collection." 

Tomura paused. That was possibility. They might even be useful for Nomus. "I see...buff the real party with weaker units...yes that's how it is." he reasoned in his childish mind. "But All Might should be off limits! He's mine to deal with!" 

"I'm sure HE knows this. But he's allowing them to deal with their enemy." 

"Yes...the "Rockman". What a stupid name." Tomura grumbled. 

Kurogiri quietly hummed, not feeling either way towards the name but glad that Shigaraki calmed down. 

//---[Back at SciLabs]---// 

All Might and Izuku walked back into the main lab to see Snipe, Endeavor, and Yuichiro. "There you are. It's improper to keep someone waiting." Endeavor scolded. 

Izuku raised an eyebrow. "Why are you even here? You don't even like me, let alone sensei." Izuku ignored his sensei's shushing motions. It was rather confusing considering Endeavor in the Anime and Manga couldn't stand the sight of All Might some days. 

Endeavor looked rather poleaxed at that observation, or as much as a man of his appearance can looked. "I rather not be here at all, but Akari mentioned that she'd be willing to use her fire side if I were to "swallow" my pride and actually work with All Might." He then glared. "I really can't stand you or your fool sensei, but my baby girl sees something in you, so I'm willing to tough it out to see what she sees." 

That left Izuku kind of speechless. Endeavor wasn't the best dad in the world to Shoto but to Akari he was more willing to compromise on his own ego just to make sure she was the best. He would have many a sleepless night trying to figure that one out. "Yes...well...at least you're being a better dad than my DNA Donor so I actually applaud you for it." 

Endeavor raised an eyebrow at the weird compliment but said nothing. 

"I hate to interrupt, but we need to hurry up. It looks like the villain is about go on another rampage." Snipe said from where he was standing. There was a monitor showing outside and the clouds looked darker than before. 

"Right." Yuichiro said before approaching Rockman and handing him a data drive. "I want you to integrate this." 

"What is it?" Izuku questioned confused. 

"Its the Tactical Data of Snipe." Yuichiro explained with a smile. "With this data, you might be able to find and take down the Darkloid hiding in the clouds." 

"I see…" Izuku looked at the data drive before an idea hit him. _'I got nothing else to lose.'_ he thought. Instead of using his hand, he pressed the Data Drive into his chest. Suddenly he emitted a bright light that blinded everyone. 

"Gah!" "What the heck?!" "What's going on?!" 

Izuku wasn't paying attention though. He felt his armor changing. But what really got him was that there wasn't any pain this time! It felt warm, like a hot shower! When the light faded, Izuku was in a new armor. His helmet now looked like a cowboy helmet with a face mask covering his mouth and he now sported body armor similar to Snipe's except for his boots. His buster now looked like a rifle with a revolver barrel and his visor that once stretched across his face, now only covered his left eye. 

"Double Soul: Snipe Soul!" He announced unintentionally before looking down at his gear. He dismissed the gun for now. It was too big to be wielding normally anyways. 

All Might was stunned. _'Incredible! I knew his quirk was so versatile but it seems to get stronger by the second. Is One for All boosting it's power?'_

"Double Soul?" Yuichiro questioned quietly. 

"It felt appropriate. It's the unity of two heros wanting to do good in the world." Izuku replied with a grin. "Thanks pard'." He said to Snipe tipping his hat. 

Snipe behind his mask grinned. "Anytime. Now go out there and show that villain whose boss!" 

Izuku nodded before rushing out of the building. 

Endeavor watched the teen leave before looking at All Might. "You've found a strong apprentice, All Might. Don't do anything foolish by doubting him now." 

"I wasn't-" All Might tried to retort but Endeavor cut him off. 

"His Power should never be in question. As long as you believe in him, he'll stick to the right path." 

All Might was starting to hate this oddly right Endeavor. 

//---[With Izuku]---// 

Izuku was amazed at how more potent speed gear was. It took him what? A half an hour to forty-five minutes to get out of the city and to the MLP by foot? He was in the city in nearly a tenth of that. 'Well I do have a core now. I noticed that even integrating new programs doesn't hurt anymore. Maybe that's the reason why it did. My Quirk was probably taking my stamina and energy to do it.' He thought which concerned him more. His Quirk was more and more autonomous from him than he realized. It made decisions based on his actions and needs. It was almost like a symbiote. But he didn't have time for that now. 

Rushing into an open area, which happened to be a quarry of a building that was being built, he sped up the skeleton of the building with nimble and well placed jumps. _'Fighting him here will ensure no civilians will get in the way.'_ he mused before activating his snipe buster and taking aim. 

_'Huh...it's too easy! I can see him through the clouds with this. I should've known it was CloudMan.'_ Izuku thought before firing. He fell backwards from the sudden kickback but his shot tore through the barrier and struck CloudMan causing his clouds to dissipate slightly. Sunlight was coming through at a rapid rate. CloudMan snarled and turned to see who shot him. He was so close to fulfilling his master plan. He flew towards the Quarry charging up some electricity in his hands. "ROCKMAN!" 

"It's over CloudMan!" 

"Not if I kill you first!" He screamed letting loose a blast of Electricity causing Izuku to dodge the deadly bolt. Izuku took another shot while dodging firing and missing CloudMan. The Darkloid sneered. "You won't beat me with those wild shots." 

"Who said they were wild?" Izuku said smirking. 

Suddenly CloudMan was struck from behind with a shot that sent him careening towards Izuku. 'What?!' He thought in shock. 

"Snipe Soul never misses because I can control the bullet trajectory!" Izuku announced dismissing his buster and preparing his hand. It began to glow with green energy. "But this battle is over! X Knuckle!" Izuku slammed his hand into CloudMan's face draining him of his data and severely damaging him. CloudMan turned into clouds in an attempt to dodge any other follow up attacks. 

"Damn you Rockman! I'll have my revenge!" CloudMan screamed. 

"Not likely!" Izuku announced turning his arm back into his snipe buster and fired a shot at the farthest cloud. CloudMan appeared in pain before exploding. "And the battle is over." 

Suddenly he heard applause. Looking around, he saw dozens of people cheering for him. 'Aw crap baskets.' he thought. How was he going to get out of this one? 

**"DO NOT WORRY FOR WE ARE HERE!"**

Izuku turned to see All Might and Endeavor landing on top of the barely constructed building. "We'll handle things from here, boy, get out of here." 

Izuku nodded. _'Man I wish I could just...teleport home or something so I won't have to deal with people chasing me.'_ Suddenly he felt weird and before he could speak, he was in his room. _'...did I just…questions for later.'_ Izuku was tired and needed his rest. Powering down, he flopped onto his bed. _'I'll take a shower when I wake up.'_

//---[Dark Room]---// 

"It would seem that CloudMan's reign of terror only lasted a few days." The Man said in his dark room. He was watching as All Might and Endeavor spoke about the "new hero" and the "villain" he destroyed, telling the populous that the being wasn't human, rather a robot designed by a villain to terrorize the people. 

"Yes," said the other voice. "But he also served a purpose. Take a look at this data he transmitted before he died." A window popped up showing Rockman and some data. 

"What's this?" 

"When Rockman used his ability to steal data from CloudMan, he stole data from Rockman. According to this, his Core is another Quirk." 

The man looked intrigued. "What's the name of this Quirk." 

"Why, it's One for All, of course." The voice replied. The man could hear the smugness in his voice. 

The Man however did not care. He began to laugh. "Yes, I see! So you've chosen HIM to be your successor, All Might! Yes very good!" 

"I thought you would like that in formation. Are you going to tell your student this?" 

"No. Shigaraki thirsts to change the world his way. I won't get in his way...however…RockMan...he's mine. A new bearer of One for All to fight!" The man clenched his fist. "My war continues. All for One...continues. Thank you for your help…Dr. Regal." 

A hologram of a man wearing dark violet clothes and a monocle appeared before him. The man bowed. 

"Of course. After all…" Regal smirked evilly. "...I am you after all." 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here are some answers to questions I'm sure people will have, though if a question you have isn't answered here feel free to ask them.
> 
> Why did Izuku's Armor turn from Green to Blue when he got One for All?  
> > Izuku's green armor was a bit of an homage to the Romhack Rockman no Constancy where the hardmode would have a Green Mega Man. This Mega Man had little Invincibility frames and took significantly more damage. Izuku's lethargicness, the pain he felt assimilating damage, and how injured he got (off screen) during the ShadeMan incident shows this. He didn't have a core so he was literally hurting himself to improve.
> 
> Why only 50% of One for All?  
> >The major problem with Izuku (in canon) using One For All is that going 100% severely injures him and while he can go 5% and even 8% when he needs to, I imagine 50% would be just as detrimental. Having 50% of the power being used to simply power his Rockman Quirk made sense in the long run because if need be, he could just Power Gear One For All, in which Power Gear is a double power buff.
> 
> Is Izuku going to be OP?  
> >He kinda is OP in Canon. One for All is a frighteningly versatile Quirk after all. His enemies don't know how to fight him, but he knows how to fight them, so in terms of strategy, these first few fights will be rofl stomps. Wait til Volume 2 of Hero's Variable. Things will be more interesting then.
> 
> Quick Cheat Sheet List to Izuku's Powers.
> 
> Master Weapons: Nitro Blast (Satsuki [Trinitro Man - Mega Man Unlimited]), Noise Crush (Jirou [Shade Man - Mega Man 7])  
> Dark Weapon: Dark Spreader (Obtained From ShadeMan), Dark Thunder (Obtained From CloudMan)  
> Double Souls: Snipe Soul (Snipe [SearchMan - Battle Network 5])
> 
> Izuku cannot use Master Weapons if he's in a Soul Form, and he cannot use either A Master Weapon or Soul Form for a while if he uses A Dark Weapon.
> 
> Dark Weapons feeds on his insecurities and plague his mind with doubt and anger. This is be touched upon more later.


	8. Disproving Relativity

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Another Aftermath Chapter. This is the second to last Chapter in this particular Arc and in this part of the story. After this, the next chapter will be the last. That's not to say that Hero's Variable will be over. Just how I planned things.

//---[Izuku PoV]---//

It’s been a quiet month since the CloudMan incident. It’s been a quiet month for me at least. I spent my time training and relaxing. It was getting closer to the Entrance Exams for the Academy and honestly...I was starting to feel like I didn’t deserve to go. Oh sure, I literally had a full ride at this point - Nezu liked me enough, and I impressed so many heroes and even though it was illegal, I was a hero, but still…

It didn’t feel like I earned it. Happenstance caused me to step up sure, but It wasn’t on my terms. None of this was on my terms. Even more so, the more I thought about the plot, the more it was hanging on by a thread now. Ochako is a dude, Todoroki and Bakugo are chicks...I found out later that Mineta actually died! Everything was all wrong. And honestly I wasn’t sure what to make of it all.

Not to mention, I found out that I wasn't fully human anymore. I had talked in length with Doctor Hikari and his findings...well we're less than pleasing. Because of my ability to accept data, part of my body was comprised of data, just given physical form. Even more, I could travel across the globe as data over wireless wave lengths. It was how I could teleport. Luckily for me, I was still human enough to live a normal life. I honestly didn't know what I would do even if I was told I was infertile or worse incompatible with humans. God that's a weird thing to say. I'm still not over it either.

I don't think I'll ever will.

//---[Normal PoV]---//

It was only a few weeks away from the Entrance Exam for U.A. and honest Izuku wasn't nervous at all, much to the ire of his future classmates. He couldn't blame them for being upset at his attitude. Satsuki said it best for him.

“The fucker never got nervous at the thought of taking a test.” She told her unfortunate rivals. Over the last few weeks, Satsuki had calmed down (as calm as she could mind you) enough to actually forge a tentative bond with the other girls in Izuku's life. Which was why they were having a bit of a study group at Satsuki’s house this time.  “It's part of the reason why he was second in the test rankings at our school.”

“Only second?” Momo questioned curiously. “I knew he was intelligent but why only second?”

“Knowing Izuku it was something along the lines of “being in first place puts a target on your back right?” Jirou ballparked with a grin. “The guy is actually kind of lazy. He’d rather spend his time lounging in the sun than being active for no real reason and being First contradicts  that.”

“It bothers me at how accurate your guess is.” Satsuki said slumping over a little. “Why is the only guy who can put up with me lazy as hell?"

“If you’re not going to go after him, do you mind if I take a shot at him?” Akari randomly asked. All the other girls froze. "I ask because I have no problems with him."

Jirou realized then and there that things were about to get messy. “Hold on before you get all violent Satsuki.” She told the girl who looked like she was about to go nuclear.

“And why the fuck should I wait to blast the face off this icy-hot bitch?!” Satsuki was grinding her teeth.

Jirou really didn’t think that far. Luckily Momo came to the rescue. “I’m sure Izuku wouldn’t like the thought of you two fighting.” Momo told them. “In fact...I’m sure he’s been avoiding us all because of that.”

“What do you mean?” Akari asked confused. 

“Well...something changed with him after that crazy storm incident.” Momo began, putting her thoughts to words. “He’s...less open, less...him in his messages and when he talks in person, he’s less enthusiastic to talk about anything, even when it comes to training. He looks...guilty.”

The other girls thought about it and realized Momo was right. Izuku was acting off. Satsuki got up from the table they were sitting at. “Let’s go pay him a visit.” 

“Whoa, hold on!” Jirou got up as well. “Are you sure that’s a good idea?”

Satsuki turned to the earphone-jacked girl. “He’s been telling me for years now to be open about my feelings and stop acting “tsundere”-” “But you are Tsundere.” “-Shut it, Freezer Burn. My point is that he doesn’t get to act like a hypocrite. Not today, not ever.”

“I suppose it beats watching you two fight.” Momo said getting up as well, followed by Akari. “So shall we go see Izuku?”

Jirou sighed. As much as she didn't want to bother the boy, she too was curious as to what was going through his mind. “Yeah, okay.”

//---[With Izuku]---//

“Very Good, Izuku. You’ve acclimated well to One for All. “ All Might lauded as he watched his apprentice and son-figure lifted a weight twelve times his own body weight.  “How much are you using right now?”

“Twenty Percent.” Came the strained replied as Izuku let the weight crash into the ground. “That’s how much I can currently use without damaging my body too much. Right now, my body feels like it’s on fire.”

“Twenty Percent is perfect given your current situation.” His sensei said with a smile. “Are you sure you still want to take the Entrance Exam? Nezu all but confirmed that you would be exempt given you record officially and unofficially.” Unofficially, he was “Cyber Hero, Rockman”, a sidekick to All Might and could legally do Hero Work as long as he was supervised. It took some strings to be pulled but with the threat of the Darkloids and the immense danger the Dark Soul possessed, the Japanese Government didn’t mind Izuku fighting the Darkloids only if he fought them. If he attempted to do Hero Work outside of fighting the Darkloids, he would be considered a Vigilante unless he was ordered by a hero to fight. It was a lot of  complicated political red tape nonsense that neither Toshinori or Izuku wanted to deal with.

“Yeah...if I skip it, then it’ll feel like I cheated my way in.” The teen replied as he wiped his forehead and neck down with a towel. “And that wouldn’t be fair to my friends either.”

All Might smiled. “Well I expect you to give it your all! Plus Ultra!” Suddenly a triumphant song began to play with lots of horns. 

Izuku gave his sensei a look. “Really Sensei? The Superman theme by John Williams?”

“I thought you enjoyed the classics?” The man shot back with a grin. He answered his phone. “Hello? Oh I see. I was training my apprentic-” He paused. “I’ll be there as quickly as possible.”  All Might then looked at his phone before shaking his head.

“Aizawa?” Izuku questioned.

“Aizawa. Said there's a meeting I need to get to so we’ll have to cut this training session short.”

“No worries. I need to rest anyways. I’ll see you later, dad.” Izuku smiled as he said that. He never got tired of it. And neither did All Might who smiled back.

“See you later kiddo.” All Might replied before he bounded away.

Izuku waited a few moments before he let out  silent “Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck! My muscles hurt…” he hissed before he teleported back to his room. “Ahhh….pain becomes me...I am pain!” 

“Izuku dear, are you back?” He heard his mother ask from beyond his door.

“Yes, can you bring me those ice packs I put in the freezer?” He asked his mother.

“Oh dear...was today’s training that bad? I’ll bring them in a moment.” 

Izuku sighed as he took off his sweat drenched shirt and crawled on top of his bed. “I am not moving from this spot.” he mumble as he silently orders his body to go on a low level repair mode. He supposed that was another benefit of having a near autonomous Quirk. His body worked almost like a machine and could do things if he “programmed” it to. He closed his eyes and sighed. He was going to feel this for a while. 

His door open and he could hear multiple footsteps. “Izuku we brought your Ice Packs.” He heard a familiar voice said. 

_‘Aww...crapbaskets.’_ he thought as he opened an eye to see Momo, Jirou, Satsuki, and Akari in his room. “Gently lay them on my arms, back and legs please.” He asked them and the girls surprisingly did so without hurting him. “Ah...sweet...cold...relief…..”

“What the hell happen to you?” Satsuki questioned.

“Forced my body into a hyperstate where I could lift something twelve times my body weight easily. Had consequences.” Izuku mumbled. “Why are you four here?”

“Well...we wanted to ask you about…” Momo began, trying to find her words.

“What crawled up your ass and died, shithead?” Satsuki demanded in her usual tone. “You’ve been acting really shitty lately and everyone can tell.”

Izuku for once didn’t have anything to say to that. He knew he had been acting like that lately, throwing himself into training really. He didn’t want to even entertain the thought Nana had put into him. He also didn’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings. If being alone meant they could be happy, then that’s what he’d do.

“As you can see, I’ve been training.” He pointed out blandly. “I kind of have to considering that I told the Principle of UA to not make any allowances on me, so I’m taking the test like every other average joe. Even more so, I can’t use my “Rockman” Form so I’m training my body and relying on my hand to hand skills. Can you blame me for wanting to focus on that?”

The girls went silent at that. His reasoning was sound, almost airtight even. His hero form was recognizable even from a distance, and he wasn’t even a legal hero yet. However… “You’re doing that damn thing again!” Satsuki yelled angrily, her hand popping with with mini explosions.

“Doing what?” Akari questioned with a frown.

“He does this thing where he throws people off with logical reasoning to hide something. He’s been doing it for years.” She growled. “It’s goddamn annoying! By the time you realize he did it, he’s gotten away with whatever he wanted!”

Izuku sighed. “How troublesome.”

Momo began to frown as well. “He’s not denying it.”

“Some information isn’t worth sharing. Being burdened with knowledge outside your pay grade is maddening, you know?” Izuku drawled. “You may think it’s dishonest, but sometimes knowing hurts more than ignorance.”

“What are you hiding?” Jirou demanded placing her hands on her hips. “What gives you the right to hide things from others?”

“When someone entrusts something to you, do you blab about it or keep it a secret like you’re supposed to?” Izuku questioned. “You’re asking me to breach the trust of another because you feel that I’m being dishonest and you’re asking me to breach my own moral code.” The girls went silent at that. They really didn’t see it from that angle.  “But since you so want to know what’s bothering me.”

“No you don’t have to tell us-” Momo began.

“No I insist. You see, I downloaded All Might’s Quirk.” _‘I’ll give them the abridged version of what happened. No need to tell them the full story of having two quirks.’_ “And when I did, it’s sheer power upgraded mine, but something else happened. I ran into a ghost. The Symbol of Peace isn’t just a title, it’s a legacy, passed down from hero to hero. And the ghost was All Might’s predecessor. And do you know what she told me?” He slowly got up, pushing the ice packs off of him, moving to a sitting position on the edge of the bed. “I’m dangerous to myself because I’m willing to sacrifice my happiness for others. She told me that I should be honest with myself, and my own heart and freaking encouraged me to have a harem.”

“WHAT?!” all four girls exclaimed in shock. Momo and Satsuki’s face turned red while Akari’s face morphed into a thoughtful expression. Jirou’s face fell into a deadpan expression like she didn’t believe him.

“Yeah, crazy right? Harems don’t work like in fiction anyways, and two, all four of you could do better than me? I’m just Izuku, I tend to geek out over quirks, I’m horribly emotional, a bit of an ass hat, I can be crude if I want to, and that list can go on. I’m not the type of person who you ladies deserve. So I distanced myself. Maybe you all would find someone better than me.”

Jirou scoffed. “There you go, making decisions for others again. Yeah, the Harem thing is a bit much and I’m not going to lie, I do like you Zuku. You’re a goofy idiot, but you’re an amazing guy, but Harem is a bit...much.”

“It’s fine with me.” Akari told them in her usual monotone.  “It’s not exactly frowned upon. Quirk Marriages are terrible, but there are still Quirk Harems around.”

“Ex...excuse me?” Izuku questioned, his face paling. “Quirk Harem?! That’s a thing?!”

“It’s more common in some of the more remote areas of the world, but Teams of Heroes tend to stay together even after they retire, and more often than not, they form romantic bonds with each other.” Akari explained without hesitation. “You’d be surprised at how many sibling and cousin hero teams there are because of this. In Japan, there’s only a few Hero Teams and even fewer Quirk Harems, but it doesn’t mean there aren’t any close relations in the many Agencies out there. It’s not illegal because none of them get married, they’re just consenting adults living together.”

Izuku couldn’t comprehend what he was hearing. This was a thing? How did he not hear about this?! The show didn’t have anything like this, nor the manga! ‘Then again…’ he thought as he calmed down. ‘Nothing has been going the way I thought it would. Yes, there has been some fixed points, but everything I’ve seen so far...has not exactly been on track.’ 

He didn’t want to think about it, but his knowledge of the universe he’s come to call home may not be of use anymore. It was a sobering thought to say the least. 

“Even so.” He finally said, drawing the eyes of the others in the room. “It’s not something...it’s not...I can’t in  good conscious allow any of you to be tied down to me. You all could do better, you know this!”

“Oh my god!” Satsuki shouted as she grabbed the boy by the shoulders. “Will you stop with this self deprecating bullshit!” Before he could brush her off, she  did something he didn’t even expect. She kissed him.

_‘Izuku.exe has encountered a fatal error._ ’ 

She broke the kiss. “I want you, Frosty Tits wants you, and I’m pretty damn sure Creative-bitch wants you too! Hell, even Earlobes want you!”

_‘Izuku.exe has encountered several fatal errors.’_   He tried to calm himself down but it was not working. What was this madness? “But Harems don’t work!”

“Why don’t they work? Are you going to cheat on us?” Akari questioned.

“What?! No, I wouldn’t!” Izuku answered automatically, the thought of doing so pissing him off.

“Didn’t you say you’re the type to cherish the one you’re with?” Satsuki continued.

“Well yeah, that’s what you’re supposed to do-”

“You’re also not the type to pick favorites I’ve noticed. You’ve treated us with equal amount of respect.” Momo pointed out.

“Of course! Why wouldn’t I?” Izuku was getting even more confused.

“And you’ve also done everything to help us improve and study hard, which means you’re more in tune with our individual needs than you let on.” Jirou added.

“Yeah, we’re friends right?”

“And all relationships start with friendships.” Akari finished.

Izuku eyes widen as all the girls smirked at him. “Now hold on just a minute-”

“Then it’s settled.” Satsuki concluded infinitely amused.

“Don’t I get a say in this?!” Izuku exclaimed

“No.” Satsuki said with conviction. “Because if you had your say, you’d sacrifice everything for our happiness and newsflash, idiot, that won’t make us happy.”

“I’m pretty sure I have to consent to any relationship. That’s also a thing.” He replied dryly.

“Are you saying you don’t want to be with us?” Momo questioned softly.

“I’m not saying that! I just...I don’t want to hurt any of you!”

“If you don’t want to hurt us, then just roll with it.” Jirou said with a shrug. “Who knows, maybe we will find someone else later down the line. Right now though there isn’t.”

“You’re just going along with this because you’re silently a sadistic troll.” Izuku muttered. 

“Oh you know you love it.”

_‘Yeah...Yeah I do.’_ he mentally sighed. Somehow, even without trying, he found himself in a harem. He’d have to do more research on Quirk Harems later. He was pretty sure Akari was pulling his leg and what's worse, the others were going along with it.“Fine, you win...can I go back to resting now? I’m pretty sure the only reason I’m still even sitting up is sheer exasperation.”

“We’ll let you get some rest.” Momo smiled as Akari guided Satsuki away from the shaking Izuku. The poor boy had to be in pain. “We’ll text you later Zuku.”

“Alright, be safe.” He called out as they left his room. He fell back onto his bed. “When did my life become a harem anime?” he grumbled annoyed. “It’s troublesome, and I said I’d go along with it, but I got other things to worry about than romance.” 

Thinking about the unknown future, Izuku slowly fell asleep. 

//---[???]---//

“Is your prototype ready for launch, Dr. Regal?”

“Yes...As you said, it’s merely a prototype, but Project Maverick will revolutionize villains everywhere. I must admit, your Nomu Project had merit, but with this, we can not only have powerful soldiers, we also do not need to even destroy the expendable ones.”

“I see... And this Prototype...it’s not meant for humans.”

“Oh no, you see, I found out that there was a robot used in the UA entrance exam called a “Zero Pointer” and had a wonderful idea…”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Before you get all pitch-forky, the whole harem aspect was a jab at super hero fanfics where characters like Peter Parker or Dick Grayson suddenly become gods gift to women. Izuku likes all of them, even cares for the girls, but even he can see this is doomed to fail. He's going along with it just to appease them. That's the type of person he is both canonically and in this story. He's always ready to help others out, even if it means breaking a few bones...particularly his own.
> 
> This also shows a hole in Izuku's plans. He was going off "canon" information and he's been shown quite literally that he can't just coast on that.


End file.
